Riding History

This riding was created in 1947 from the former ridings of Wright and Hull/>/>; it followed them in being a Liberal stronghold. Gaston Isabelle, who was elected here in 1965, ran in Hull/>/> in 1968. This riding stayed Liberal with Gaston Clermont from 1968 to 1979, then Rene Cousineau in 1979 and 1980. In 1984, Progressive Conservative Claudy Mailly defeated Cousineau and became the first Conservative to win this riding, and the first Tory to win in the area since 1917. Mark Assad won it back for the Liberals in 1988. He won by large margins in 1993 when the Bloc Quebecois was second and in 1997 with the PC second.

In 2000, Assad led the Bloc Quebecois's Richard Nadeau by 26 percentage points. And, in 2004, new Liberal Fran�oise Boivin defeated Nadeau by a whisker. In 2006, they paired up a second time and the Bloc Quebecois's Nadeau finally won--by eight percentage points.

Riding Profile

This riding has the Ottawa River in the south and the Gatineau/> River/> in the west, and is comprised of the old City of Gatineau/>/>. A number of federal and provincial government offices are located in Gatineau/>, due to its proximity to the national capital, and its status as the main town of the Outaouais region of Quebec/>/>. The Quebec/>/> portion of Ottawa-Gatineau in 2006 was 283,959 people, up 8.5% from 2001. The riding's biggest employer, unsurprisingly, is government services and related industries, along with retail trade and other services--with tourism big as well. Two important tourist attractions located in Gatineau/> are the Canadian/> Museum/>/> of Civilization and the Casino du Lac Leamy. The city contains the Universit� du Qu�bec en Outaouais (UQO) and two provincial junior colleges. Average family income approaches $67.000. T

The old city, which is the riding is east of where the Gatineau/> River/> runs into the Ottawa/>, with Hull/> to the west. Kettle/> Island/>/> is also a part of riding. In the 1995 referendum, 72% voted against sovereignty.

Population: 102, 898 (140)

Canadian Citizenship: 98.7%

Immigrants: 4.91%   Visible Minorities: 0.29% (166)

Mother Tongue: French 88.47%, English 5.91%, Arabic 1.52%, Portugese 0.92%

Average Household Income: $53,110 (162)

Housing: Own 66.04%, Rent 33.96%

Average House Price: $103,684 (226)

Highest Education: College 24.38%, University 19.48%, High School 17.57%

Marital Status: Married 43.1%, Single 39%, Common Law 17.34%, Separated/Divorced 13.22%, Widowed 4.68%