Terrebonne: two women, two colors, two camps
Jean Numa Goudou ·
Ottawa launches three by-elections for next April 13, including one in Terrebonne following the Supreme Court's decision to annul the elections due to a postal code error.
Women's Day, March 8, a Black woman and a White woman put on their boots to embark on door-to-door campaigning to win over Terrebonne voters for 36 days. It's a war to find the best spots on poles to hang signs in blue (Bloc québécois) and red (Liberal Party of Canada) colors.
Ottawa is calling three by-elections for April 13, including one in Terrebonne following the Supreme Court's decision to annul the elections due to a postal code error.
At Tatiana Auguste's campaign office on montée Masson, a small army of "young and motivated" volunteers leaves the premises to go door-to-door or to the city's electrical poles "to bring Terrebonne back to the decision-making table," says the incumbent MP.
"It was disappointing, but I accept the court's decision," Auguste reflects, "there's nothing I can do but go back to campaigning." Her campaign is indeed boosted by a visit from Prime Minister Mark Carney himself, even before the elections were called.
Ministers like Marjorie Michel and Mélanie Joly have gone door-to-door. With the MP for Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Tatiana Auguste visited neighborhood grocery stores and churches on Sunday, March 8, "to find out what concerns citizens." The MP for Bourassa, another Montreal riding, Abdelhaq Sari went to mobilize Terrebonne's Maghrebi community in her favor.
At ease
Even Terrebonne mayor Mathieu Traversy had declared that the incumbent MP had not disappointed citizens in his opinion. "This gives me a lot of energy to run the campaign," confides the Liberal candidate. Ms. Auguste says she feels more at ease in this contest compared to the first time.
"Now, people know me better. I've taken root in this community. I have a closeness with people," she notes, "but for me, the issues haven't changed: the cost of living, the situation around the world."
Tatiana Auguste had won by one vote against Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné, who always contested the victory by taking the matter to court. One vote in favor of Ms. Sinclair-Desgagné had not been counted due to an error related to the postal code.
The Supreme Court finally annulled the Terrebonne elections on February 13, after nine months. Before this decision, Quebec Superior Court had concluded it was "human error" and had refused to cancel the elections.
Tatiana Auguste says she now observes mobilization from all communities during this campaign. Her rival, Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné of the Bloc québécois, had for her part deplored on her Facebook page on February 16 that her fight for election annulment was taking on a "communitarian" tone.
"Many of you have shared your surprise and disappointment at seeing that some want to give a communitarian tone to the upcoming campaign in Terrebonne," she wrote.
"Being Quebec-Peruvian myself, know that I will not enter this game. I have always worked to serve all Terrebonnians, regardless of their origin... If democracy is a fundamental principle for me, equality and fraternity are just as much so."