France Belisle elected Gatineau's first female mayor

France Bélisle was elected mayor of Gatineau on Sunday. (Photo courtesy: Facebook/Francealamairie)

OTTAWA -

France Bélisle is the new mayor of Gatineau, becoming the first woman elected to hold the top job in the city.

The former head of Tourisme Outaouais and executive at Radio-Canada easily won Sunday's municipal election, succeeding Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin as mayor of Gatineau.

As of 11:30 p.m., Bélisle had received 43 per cent of the vote.

Action Gatineau candidate Maude Marquis-Bissonette was second with 38 per cent of the vote, while former Gatineau councillor Jean-Francois Leblanc was third at 16 per cent.

Jacques Lemay, Remi Bergeron and Abdelhak Lekbabi also ran for mayor in Sunday's municipal election.

"Merci Gatineau," Bélisle said in a statement on Facebook shortly before celebrating with supporters Sunday evening.

"It is with humility that I celebrate this victory tonight .. I won't be perfect, but everyday I will do my best," Bélisle said in French.

Bélisle's victory ends eight years of governing by Pedneaud-Jobin and the Action Gatineau party. Pedneaud-Jobin, leader of Action Gatineau, decided not to seek re-election for a third term.

Bélisle was born and raised in Hull, graduated from the University of Ottawa with a bachelor's degree in journalism, and has a master's degree in journalistic studies from Carleton University.

GATINEAU CITY COUNCIL

Twelve new councillors will join Bélisle on Gatineau city council for the next four years, while a 13^th district will be represented by a familiar face at Gatineau City Hall.

Eight councillors decided not to seek re-election, former councillors Marquis-Bissonette and Leblanc ran for mayor, and Gatineau added a 19^th district for the new term. In addition, former Deschenes District councillor Mike Duggan was elected in Pointe-Gatineau.

Six of the seven councillors seeking re-election in their district won re-election on Sunday night. Incumbent Martin Lajeunesse of Action Gatineau lost in Buckingham.

Here is a look at the district results:

• District d'Aylmer (1): Steve Boivin was elected with 56 per cent of the vote. Incumbent Audrey Bureau did not seek re-election.
• District de Lucerne (2): Gilles Chagnon (incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de Deschenes (3): Caroline Murray (Action Gatineau) elected for the first time. Incumbent Mike Duggan ran in Pointe-Gatineau.
• District du Plateau (4): Bettyna Belizaire (Action Gatineau) elected for the first time. Incumbent Maude Marquis-Bissonnette ran for mayor.
• District de Mitigomijokan (5): Anik des Marais (Action Gatineau) elected for the first time. This is a new district in Gatineau for the 2021 election.
• District du Manoir-des-Trembles-Val-Tetreau (6): Jocelyn Blondin (incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de Hull-Wright (7): Steve Moran (Action Gatineau) elected for the first time. Incumbent Cedric Tessier did not seek re-election.
• District du Parc-de-la-Montagne-Saint-Raymond (8): Louise Boudrais (incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de l'Oree-du-Parc (9): Isabelle N. Miron (Action Gatineau - incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de Limbour (10): Louis Sabourin (Action Gatineau) was elected. Incumbent Renee Amyot did not seek re-election.
• District de Touraine (11): Tiffany-Lee Norris Parent (Action Gatineau) elected for the first time. Incumbent Nathalie Lemieux did not seek re-election.
• District de Pointe-Gatineau: Mike Duggan elected for the first time in Pointe-Gatineau. Duggan was previously the councillor for District de Deschenes. Incumbent Myriam Nadeau did not seek re-election.
• District du Carrefour-de-l'Hopital (13): Olive Kamanyana elected for the first time. Incumbent Gilles Carpentier did not seek re-election.
• District du Versant (14): Daniel Champagne (incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de Bellevue (15): Alicia Lacasse-Brunet (Action Gatineau) elected for a first term as councillor. Incumbent Pierre Lanthier did not seek re-election.
• District du Lac-Beauchamp (16): Daniel Girouard was elected as the new representative. Incumbent Jean-Francois Leblanc ran for mayor.
• District de la Riviere-Blanche (17): Jean Lessard (incumbent) re-elected for a new term.
• District de Masson-Angers (18): Mario Aube elected for a first term. Incumbent Marc Carriere did not seek re-election.
• District de Buckingham (19): Edmond Leclerc elected for a first term, defeating incumbent Martin Lajeunesse of Action Gatineau