View source for Robert Bourassa

{{Short description|Premier of Quebec (1970–1976; 1985–1994)}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| birthname            = Jean-Robert Bourassa
| honorific-suffix     = {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|GOQ|size=100%}}
|name=Robert Bourassa
| image                = Robert_Bourassa01.jpg
| caption              = 
| birth_date           = {{Birth date|1933|7|14|mf=y}}
| birth_place          = [[Montreal]], [[Quebec]], Canada
| residence            =
| death_date           = {{death date and age|1996|10|2|1933|07|14}}
| death_place          = Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| resting_place = [[Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery]]
| order                = 22nd
| office               = Premier of Quebec
| deputy1              = [[Pierre Laporte]] (1970)
| term_start1          = May 12, 1970
| term_end1            = November 25, 1976
| monarch1             = [[Elizabeth II]]
| lieutenant_governor1 = [[Hugues Lapointe]]
| predecessor1         = [[Jean-Jacques Bertrand]]
| successor1           = [[René Lévesque]]
| deputy2              = [[Lise Bacon]]
| term_start2          = December 12, 1985
| term_end2            = January 11, 1994
| monarch2             = [[Elizabeth II]]
| lieutenant_governor2 = [[Gilles Lamontagne]]<br />[[Martial Asselin]]
| predecessor2         = [[Pierre-Marc Johnson]]
| successor2           = [[Daniel Johnson Jr.]]
| office3              = [[Saint-Laurent (provincial electoral district)|MNA for Saint-Laurent]]
| term_start3          = January 20, 1986
| term_end3            = January 11, 1994
| predecessor3         = Germain Leduc
| successor3           = [[Normand Cherry]]
| office4              = [[Mercier (provincial electoral district)|MNA for Mercier]]
| term_start4          = June 5, 1966
| term_end4            = November 25, 1976
| predecessor4         = ''District created''
| successor4           = [[Gérald Godin]]
| office5              = [[Bertrand (1981–94 electoral district)|MNA for Bertrand]]
| term_start5          = June 3, 1985
| term_end5            = December 2, 1985
| predecessor5         = [[Denis Lazure]]
| successor5           = Jean-Guy Parent
| party                = [[Quebec Liberal Party]]
|alma_mater            = {{ubl | [[Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf]] | [[Université de Montréal]] | [[Keble College, Oxford]] | [[Harvard University]]}}
| spouse               = {{marriage|Andrée Simard|1958}}
| profession           = {{hlist | Financial advisor | teacher | lawyer}}
}}
'''Robert Bourassa'''<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1970/05/01/archives/quebecs-new-premier.html | work=The New York Times | title=Quebec's New Premier | date=May 1, 1970}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/04/world/man-in-the-news-jean-robert-bourassa-a-quebecer-back-on-top.html | work=The New York Times | title=Man In The News: Jean Robert Bourassa; A Quebecer Back On Top | first=Douglas | last=Martin | date=December 4, 1985}}</ref> {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|GOQ}} ({{IPA|fr|ʁɔbɛʁ buʁasa}}; July 14, 1933 &ndash; October 2, 1996) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd [[premier of Quebec]] from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the [[Liberal Party of Quebec]], he served a total of just under 15 years as premier. Bourassa's tenure was marked by major events affecting Quebec, including the [[October Crisis]] and the [[Meech Lake Accord|Meech Lake]] and [[Charlottetown Accord|Charlottetown]] Accords.

==Early years and education==
Bourassa was born to a [[working class]] family in [[Montreal]], the son of Adrienne (née Courville; 1897–1982) and Aubert Bourassa, a port authority worker.<ref>{{QuebecMNAbio|bourassa-robert-2231}}</ref> Robert Bourassa graduated from the [[Université de Montréal]] law school in 1956 and was admitted to the [[Bar of Quebec|Barreau du Québec]] the following year. On August 23, 1958, he married Andrée Simard (1931–2022), heiress to the powerful shipbuilding Simard family of Sorel, Quebec.<ref>[https://www.dignitymemorial.com/fr-ca/obituaries/montreal-qc/andree-simard-bourassa-11041681 Avis de Décès: Andrée Simard Bourassa 30 octobre 1932 – 28 novembre 2022.]</ref> Later, he studied at [[Keble College]], [[University of Oxford]] and also obtained a degree in [[political economy]] at [[Harvard University]] in 1960. On his return to Quebec, he was employed at the federal Department of National Revenue as a fiscal adviser. He also worked as a professor of public finance at Université de Montréal and [[Université Laval]].

==Quebec legislator==

Bourassa was first elected as a member of the [[Legislative Assembly of Quebec]] (MLA) for the riding of [[Mercier (provincial electoral district)|Mercier]] in 1966, then won the [[Quebec Liberal Party leadership elections#1970 leadership convention|Quebec Liberal Party leadership election]] on January 17, 1970. He positioned himself as a young, competent administrator. He chose "100,000 jobs" as his slogan, which emphasized that job creation would be his priority. Bourassa felt the extensive hydro-electric resources of Quebec were the most effective means of completing the modernization of Quebec and sustaining job creation.  He successfully led his party into government in the [[1970 Quebec general election|1970 election]], defeating the conservative [[Union Nationale (Quebec)|Union Nationale]] government<ref name=G&M>Downey, Donn. ''Former premier fought for Quebec'', A14. ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', October 3, 1996.</ref> and becoming the youngest premier in Quebec history.

==Premier of Quebec (1970–1976)==

One of Bourassa's first crises as premier was the [[October Crisis]] of 1970, in which his deputy, [[Pierre Laporte]], was kidnapped and later murdered by members of the [[Front de libération du Quebec]].  Bourassa requested that Prime Minister [[Pierre Trudeau]] invoke the ''[[War Measures Act]]'', which allowed for search and arrest of anyone associated with, or thought to be associated with the FLQ. Bourassa also requisitioned military assistance using provisions of the [[National Defence Act]], which resulted in the deployment of troops to guard vital points in Montreal and assist police.  The [[Canadian Armed Forces]] were withdrawn on 4 January 1971, and [[Paul Rose (political figure)|Paul Rose]] and some of his accomplices were found guilty of murder later that year.

Bourassa and Trudeau often clashed over issues of federal-provincial relations and [[Quebec nationalism]], with Trudeau opposing what he saw as concessions to [[Quebec sovereignty movement|sovereignism]]. In June 1971 he participated in an attempt at constitutional reform, the [[Victoria Charter]],<ref>[http://www.canadahistory.com/sections/documents/federal/Victoria%20Charter%201971.html canadahistory.com: "The Canadian Constitutional Charter, 1971: The Victoria Charter"]</ref> which quickly unravelled when Bourassa backed away from the proposed deal after it was strongly criticized by Quebec opinion leaders for not giving Quebec more powers.<ref>[http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/readings/victoria.htm marianopolis.edu: "Readings in Quebec History - The Victoria Charter, Constitutional Reform and Quebec (1971)"]</ref><ref>[http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=hist&doc=victoria-eng.htm pco-bcp.gc.ca: "Intergovernmental Affairs: Constitutional Conference - Victoria (1971)"]</ref><ref>[https://ualawccsprod.srv.ualberta.ca/ccs/index.php/sz/554-victoria-charter ualberta.ca: "Victoria Charter"]</ref>

On 8 October 1971, Trudeau announced in the House of Commons that, after much deliberation,  the [[Multiculturalism in Canada|policy of multiculturalism]] would be implemented in Canada.<ref name="Richter2011d">{{cite book|author=Miriam Verena Richter|title=Creating the National Mosaic: Multiculturalism in Canadian Children's Literature from 1950 To 1994|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WjmZiv-RXmMC&pg=PA36|year=2011|publisher=Rodopi|isbn=978-90-420-3351-1|page=36}}</ref> Bourassa documented his strong opposition to Trudeau's policy in a letter which he released to the press on 17 November 1971, and stated he had "serious misgivings about the principle of the multicultural policy". The policy document tabled in the House "dissociates culture from language", which seemed to Bourassa "a questionable basis on which to found a policy". Bourassa declared that Quebec did not accept the federal government's approach to the principle of multiculturalism.<ref>Jeffrey Keshen and Suzanne Morton (1998): ''Material Memory: Documents in Post-Confederation History''. Don Mills: Addison Wesley Longman.</ref>

During his time in power, Bourassa implemented policies aimed at protecting the status of the French language in Quebec. In 1974, he introduced [[Official Language Act (Quebec)|Bill 22]], which declared French to be the sole official language of the province.  As a result, Quebec was no longer institutionally bilingual (French and English), though the rights of anglophones were still protected under the [[British North America Acts]]. Many businesses and professionals were unable to operate under such requirements. Bill 22 angered Anglophones while not going far enough for many Francophones; Bourassa was vilified by both groups. In response Trudeau described Bourassa as a “mangeur de hot-dogs” (“hotdog eater”).<ref>{{cite web | url=https://parli.ca/mangeur-de-hot-dogs/ | title="Mangeur de hot-dogs" | date=21 October 2021 }}</ref>

Bourassa initiated the [[James Bay Project|James Bay hydroelectric project]] in 1971 that led to the [[James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement]] of 1975 with the [[Cree]] and [[Inuit]] inhabitants of the region. The Bourassa government also played a major role in rescuing the [[1976 Summer Olympics|1976 Olympic Games]] in Montreal from huge cost overruns and construction delays. Bourassa's government became embroiled in corruption scandals.

On 21 March 1974, workers belonging to the [[Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec]] union working on the LG-2 construction site of the James Bay project rioted using their bulldozers to destroy the site they were working on while other workers set buildings afire.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187">{{cite news
  | last = Curran
  | first = Peggy
  | title = Trip back in corruption time machine
  | newspaper = The Montreal Gazette
  | date = 10 May 2012
  | url = https://montrealgazette.com/news/trip+back+corruption+time+machine/7328187/story.html
  | access-date = 2017-12-07
  | archive-date = 2019-08-27
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190827025003/http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/trip%20back%20corruption%20time%20machine/7328187/story.html
  | url-status = dead
  }}</ref> The riot caused $35 million in damage, and was part of an extortion attempt on the part of the union boss [[André Desjardins|André "Dédé" Desjardins]], who was known in Quebec as the "King of Construction". In response to the violence at the LG-2 site, which confirmed long-standing rumors about thuggish practices on the part of construction unions, Bourassa appointed a commission consisting of a well respected judge [[Robert Cliche]], a prominent Montreal labour lawyer [[Brian Mulroney]] and [[Guy Chevrette]], the vice-president of the ''Centrale de l'enseignement du Québec'', whose legal counsel was another prominent lawyer [[Lucien Bouchard]] to investigate corruption in the construction industry in Quebec.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/> The Cliche commission as it became known held 68 days of hearings on live TV, interviewing 279 people from the construction industry, who testified to widespread corruption and violence in the construction industry, and to the close ties between the Bourassa cabinet, the Mafia and corrupt construction union bosses.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/> Bouchard had wanted to have Bourassa testify before the commission, but Mulroney prevented this, saying that having the Premier of Quebec testify before the commission would be a violation of "executive privilege". Nonetheless, the Cliche commission established the Quebec construction industry was dominated by a casual brutality with thuggish union bosses teaching union organizers how best to break legs.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/> Workers who complained about corruption on the part of their bosses had their dogs murdered and their teenage children beaten up.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/>

When the Cliche commission presented its report in May 1975, the document was described as an exposé of "an organized system of corruption without parallel in North America" as the commission noted that it was political corruption that had enabled the corruption in the construction industry.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/> In an editorial, the ''Montreal Gazette'' wrote about the Cliche commission report: "A devastating document. For some four years, the Bourassa government worked hand in glove with gangster union leadership in the province's construction industry."<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/> The Cliche commission had little impact on the problem of corruption in the Quebec construction industry, but turned public opinion against Bourassa, whose special adviser had asked the corrupt construction unions to help the Liberals win a by-election in exchange for giving firms that employed workers in the corrupt unions exclusive contracts to work on the James Bay project.<ref name="montrealgazette_7328187"/>

Bourassa lost the [[1976 Quebec general election|1976 provincial election]] to [[René Lévesque]], leader of the [[Quebec sovereignty movement|sovereigntist]] [[Parti Québécois]], in a massive landslide brought on by the language controversy and the corruption scandals, among other things.  Bourassa himself was heavily defeated in his own riding by PQ challenger [[Gérald Godin]]. He resigned as Liberal Party leader and accepted teaching positions in Europe and the United States.<ref>[http://agora.qc.ca/Dossiers/Robert_Bourassa Encyclopédie de L'Agora | Bourassa Robert<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He remained in political exile until he returned to politics by winning the [[Quebec Liberal Party leadership elections#1983 leadership convention|Quebec Liberal Party leadership election]] on October 15, 1983. On June 3, 1985, he won a [[by-election]] in [[Bertrand (1981–94 electoral district)|Bertrand]].

==Out of politics (1976–1985)==

Bourassa resigned as Liberal leader and exiled himself for nine years into academic obscurity. During these nine years, he spent his time overseas. In 1980, Bourassa campaigned in favour of the "no" side (which was eventually successful) of the [[1980 Quebec referendum]] on a sovereignty-association agreement with the federal government. In 1983, Bourassa was elected Liberal leader again, replacing [[Claude Ryan]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Foot |first1=Richard |last2=Latouche |first2=Daniel |title=Robert Bourassa |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/robert-bourassa |website=Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=2 July 2022 |date=18 February 2008}}</ref>

==Premier of Quebec (1985–1994)==
Bourassa led the PLQ to victory in the [[1985 Quebec general election|1985 election]]. However, he lost his own seat to Parti Québécois candidate [[Jean-Guy Parent]]. On January 20, 1986, he was elected in a by-election in the Liberal stronghold of [[Saint-Laurent (provincial electoral district)|Saint-Laurent]] after the sitting Liberal MNA Germain Leduc resigned in his favour.

During his second term as premier, Bourassa in 1988 invoked the [[Section Thirty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms|notwithstanding clause]] of the ''[[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]]'' to override a [[Supreme Court of Canada]] ruling that declared parts of the Charter of the French Language unconstitutional, causing some of his anglophone ministers to resign. In 1993, however, he introduced modifications to the language charter. These compromises reduced the controversy over language that had been a dominant feature of Quebec politics over the previous decades.

During the [[Oka Crisis]] in 1990, Bourassa invoked the National Defence Act for the second time, requisitioning the Canadian Armed Forces to help police.

Bourassa also pushed for Quebec to be acknowledged in the Canadian constitution as a "distinct society", promising Quebec residents that their grievances could be resolved within Canada with a new constitutional deal.  He worked closely with Prime Minister [[Brian Mulroney]] and received many concessions from the federal government, culminating in the [[Meech Lake Accord]] in 1987 and the [[Charlottetown Accord]] in 1992.  The Meech Lake Accord failed in June 1990 when two provinces, Manitoba and Newfoundland, refused to ratify the agreement their premiers had signed. That failure revived the Quebec separatist movement.  The Charlottetown Accord was defeated in a nationwide plebiscite in 1992; it was heavily defeated even in Quebec, partly due to the perception that Bourassa had given away too much at the negotiations.

==Final years==
[[File:Robert Bourassa tombe.jpg|thumb|Bourassa's funeral monument in Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery.]]
Bourassa retired from politics in 1994.  He was replaced as Liberal leader and premier by [[Daniel Johnson Jr.]], who lost an election to the sovereigntist Parti Québécois after only nine months.

In 1996, Bourassa, who had spent much of his vacation time in hot climates, died in Montreal of [[melanoma]]<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/robert-bourassa-obituary/ |title=Bourassa, Robert (Obituary) |access-date=2007-09-14 |last=Came |first=Barry |author2=Brenda Branswell |date=1996-10-14 |encyclopedia=[[The Canadian Encyclopedia]] (article reprinted from [[Maclean's Magazine]]) |publisher=Historica Foundation}}</ref> at the age of 63, and was interred at the [[Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery]] in Montreal.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Répertoire des personnages inhumés au cimetière ayant marqué l'histoire de notre société|publisher=Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery|location=Montreal|language=fr}}</ref>

==Quotations==
*"No matter what anyone says and no matter what anyone does, Quebec is, today and forever, a [[distinct society]], free and capable of assuming its destiny and development." ([http://archives.radio-canada.ca/IDCC-0-17-1176-6446/politique_economie/accord_meech/ watch excerpts of original speech]) ([http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-73-1180-6498/politics_economy/meech_lake/clip10 watch English dubbing]) [[Meech Lake Accord]].
*"There was no censorship of the press: in general, the ''War Measures Act'' could have been made even more radical."
*"A diplomat had been kidnapped, a cabinet minister had been kidnapped, they were under threats of murder. The police forces were rather tired. After a whole week, we were unable to find those that had effected the kidnappings."
*"We all have the means to be prosperous. We have to find the balance between our wealth and our needs."

==Homages==
[[File:Bourassa National Assembly.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Statue of Bourassa on the grounds of the Quebec legislature]]
* A statue and a memorial of Bourassa was unveiled in front of the National Assembly on October 19, 2006.<ref name="cbc.ca">{{cite news| url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/bourassa-statue-unveiled-as-street-naming-stirs-controversy-1.594056 | work=CBC News | title=Bourassa statue unveiled as street naming stirs controversy | date=October 19, 2006}}</ref>
* The City of Quebec renamed Highway Du Vallon, a major road in Quebec City, after Bourassa in late 2006.
* In [[Montreal]], the portion of [[University Street|Rue University]] from Bonaventure Expressway to Sherbrooke Street was renamed [[Robert-Bourassa Boulevard|Boulevard Robert-Bourassa]].<ref name="CBC">{{cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/part-of-university-street-renamed-robert-bourassa-boulevard-1.2999668 | work=CBC | title=Part of University Street renamed Robert-Bourassa Boulevard | date=March 18, 2015}}</ref>
* Canada's largest hydroelectric power station, [[Robert-Bourassa generating station]], and its accompanying reservoir, [[Robert-Bourassa Reservoir]] were named after Bourassa in honour of his support of the James Bay Project.

In March 2015, a section of University Street (from Notre-Dame Street to Sherbrooke Street) in the downtown core of Montreal was renamed Robert-Bourassa Boulevard.

===Park Avenue controversy ===
On October 18, 2006, Montreal Mayor [[Gérald Tremblay]] announced that Montreal's Park Avenue would be named after Bourassa.<ref name="cbc.ca"/>  On November 28 the [[Montreal city council]] voted in favour (40–22) of renaming Park Avenue after Bourassa.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/turn-the-page-on-parc-avenue-debate-mayor-1.576704#skip300x250 | work=[[CBC News]] | title='Turn the page' on Park Avenue debate: mayor | date=November 29, 2006}}</ref> If, as had been expected, [[Commission de toponymie du Québec|Quebec's Toponymy Commission]] had approved the name change, all of Park Avenue and its continuation, Bleury, would have been renamed Robert Bourassa Avenue. This would have caused the newly named street to intersect [[René Lévesque Boulevard]], named after a long time political rival to Bourassa. That boulevard, in turn, had been renamed from Dorchester Boulevard in 1987, in a decision that was also not without controversy.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=3e6294cc-444e-4d91-964b-fc5309718b0e&k=0|title=Montreal to rename Dorchester Blvd. after Levesque|newspaper=[[Montreal Gazette]]|year=1987|access-date=April 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628221544/http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=3e6294cc-444e-4d91-964b-fc5309718b0e&k=0|archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref> This decision by the City of Montreal without any consultation with the people of the city caused an immediate controversy,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=50294a1a-056c-4c61-a075-7dce3dab3cf0&k=0|title=Bourassa handed Park's spot|newspaper=[[Montreal Gazette]]|date=January 5, 2007|access-date=April 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024045815/http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=50294a1a-056c-4c61-a075-7dce3dab3cf0&k=0|archive-date=October 24, 2012}}
</ref> though many of those opposed to the change considered it a ''[[fait accompli]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/editorial/story.html?id=4f0cb4ee-b930-4811-b67a-c8e2c0a5a06e|title=Tremblay's high-handed deletion of Park Ave.|newspaper=[[Montreal Gazette]]|date=October 19, 2006|access-date=April 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024042556/http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/editorial/story.html?id=4f0cb4ee-b930-4811-b67a-c8e2c0a5a06e|archive-date=October 24, 2012}}</ref> The proposal spawned substantial grass-roots opposition, both because of the lack of prior citizen input and because Park is itself a meaningful street name, associated with the city's [[Mount Royal]] park.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=4319576e-b633-4e0b-8e60-9522c2ded3a3&k=0|title=Ave du Parc, je me souviens|newspaper=[[Montreal Gazette]]|date=January 5, 2007|access-date=April 27, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024045311/http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/park/story.html?id=4319576e-b633-4e0b-8e60-9522c2ded3a3&k=0|archive-date=October 24, 2012}}</ref>  In addition to protests and active opposition by a committee of Montreal residents and businesses opposed to the name change, an online petition garnered more than 18,000 virtual signatures against this renaming.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://causes.ca/duparc |title=No to Park Avenue's Name Change to "Robert-Bourassa Avenue" |access-date=October 22, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070108202427/http://causes.ca/duparc |archive-date=January 8, 2007 }}</ref>  On February 5, 2007, Montreal mayor [[Gérald Tremblay]] withdrew his proposal to rename Park Avenue.<ref>{{cite news | title=Montreal mayor drops plan to rename Parc Avenue | url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-mayor-drops-plan-to-rename-parc-avenue-1.638770 | access-date=April 27, 2011 | work=[[CBC News]] | date=February 6, 2007}}</ref>  However, there is a Robert Bourassa Blvd., located in the [[Duvernay, Quebec|Duvernay]] district of [[Laval, Quebec]].

==Election results (partial)==
{{Canadian election result/top|QC|1989|percent=yes|change=yes}}
{{CANelec|QC|Liberal |Robert Bourassa |15,493|52.13|&minus;30.57}}
{{CANelec|QC|Equality|Ciro Paul Scotti |7,101|23.89|&ndash;}}
{{CANelec|QC|PQ|Marie-France Charbonneau |5,559|18.70|&ndash;}}
{{CANelec|QC|Green |François Leduc |864|2.91|+1.47}}
{{CANelec|QC|NDP (1963) |Daniel Sabbah |248|0.83|&minus;7.95}}
{{CANelec|QC|Communist |Thomas Hudson |158|0.53|&ndash;}}
{{CANelec|QC|Lemon|Marcel Provost |150|0.50|&ndash;}}
{{CANelec|QC|[[Parti des travailleurs du Québec|Workers]]|Jean Bilodeau |147|0.49|&ndash;}}
{{Canadian election result/total|Total valid votes|29,720 |98.41 |&ndash;}}
{{Canadian election result/total|Total rejected ballots|479 |1.59 |&ndash;}}
{{Canadian election result/total|Turnout|30,199 |74.12 |+27.93}}
{{Canadian election result/total|Electors on the lists|40,745 |&ndash;|&ndash;}}
{{end}}
{{1986 Quebec provincial by-elections/Saint-Laurent}}
{{1976 Quebec general election/Mercier}}
{{1973 Quebec general election/Mercier}}
{{1970 Quebec general election/Mercier}}
{{1966 Quebec general election/Mercier}}

==See also==
*[[Meech Lake Accord#Aftermath|Robert Bourassa's speech on the end of the Meech Lake Accord]]
*[[Politics of Quebec]]
*[[List of Quebec premiers|List of Quebec Premiers]]
*[[Quebec general elections]]
*[[Timeline of Quebec history]]
*[[Prime Minister nicknaming in Quebec]]
*[[Boubou Macoutes]]
*[[Robert-Bourassa generating station]] and [[Robert-Bourassa Reservoir|reservoir]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=Tu2RuQ_HQxcC&pg=PP7 The Trickster: Robert Bourassa and Quebeckers 1990&ndash;1992] JF Lisée book on Bourassa available online on Google Print.
*[http://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-74-915/people/robert_bourassa/ CBC Digital Archives: Robert Bourassa: Political Survivor]
*[http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/robert-bourassa-obituary/ Robert Bourassa, by Daniel Latouche]

{{QCPremiers}}
{{Quebec Liberal Leaders}}
{{Second Bourassa Ministry}}
{{First Bourassa Ministry}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourassa, Robert}}
[[Category:1933 births]]
[[Category:1996 deaths]]
[[Category:Lawyers from Montreal]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Politicians from Montreal]]
[[Category:Quebec Liberal Party MNAs]]
[[Category:Premiers of Quebec]]
[[Category:Université de Montréal alumni]]
[[Category:Deaths from melanoma in Canada]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in Quebec]]
[[Category:Grand Officers of the National Order of Quebec]]
[[Category:Quebec political party leaders]]
[[Category:October Crisis]]
[[Category:Université de Montréal Faculty of Law alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the National Assembly of Quebec]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of Oxford]]
[[Category:Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery]]