Bernard Drainville MNA (born June 6, 1963) is a Canadian politician, television host and journalist. He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Marie-Victorin in Longueuil from 2007 to 2016, representing the Parti Québécois.

Bernard Drainville
Drainville in 2024
MNA for Lévis
Assumed office
October 3, 2022
Preceded byFrançois Paradis
Quebec Minister of Education
Assumed office
October 20, 2022
Preceded byJean-François Roberge
MNA for Marie-Victorin
In office
April 25, 2007 – June 13, 2016
Preceded byCécile Vermette
Succeeded byCatherine Fournier
Personal details
Born (1963-06-06) June 6, 1963 (age 61)
La Visitation-de-l'Île-Dupas, Quebec, Canada
Political partyCoalition Avenir Québec
Other political
affiliations
Parti Québécois (2007–2022)
ResidenceQuebec City
ProfessionJournalist, television host
PortfolioHealth and Castonguay Commission (2008) affairs

Since 2022 He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Lévis, representing the Coalition Avenir Québec. He is currently serving as the Minister of Education.

Biography

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Drainville was born in La Visitation-de-l'Île-Dupas, Quebec. He attended the University of Ottawa, where he was president of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa in 1984–85, and obtained a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in international relations at the London School of Economics.

In 1989, Drainville joined Radio-Canada as a journalist, where he worked at the Windsor affiliate. He became a correspondent for Latin America in 2001, where he was arrested once in Mexico and detained by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Prior to 2007, he was a television host at the network's news channel RDI and the correspondent at the National Assembly, and a correspondent for the House of Commons of Canada from 1998 to 2001. He hosted the City of Montreal mayoral debate between Gérald Tremblay and Pierre Bourque during the 2005 municipal election campaign.

Drainville jumped into provincial politics and was elected in the 2007 elections in Marie-Victorin and was named the PQ's critic in health. He was re-elected in the 2008 and 2012 general elections.

On September 19, 2012, he became Minister responsible for Democratic Institutions and Active Citizenship[1] under the Marois government. He was responsible for introducing the controversial Quebec Charter of Values, which would have banned state employees from wearing religious symbols.

He was re-elected in 2014, despite his party's defeat and was appointed the official opposition critic for energy and natural resources.[2]

On October 20, 2014, he declared his candidacy for the Parti Québécois leadership election[3] but dropped out on April 22, 2015, and endorsed Pierre-Karl Péladeau.[4]

On September 7, 2015, he was appointed the Opposition House leader by Péladeau.

On June 13, 2016, he announced he was leaving politics, saying that Mr. Péladeau's departure had prompted a reflection on his own career. He is going back to work in the media, co-hosting with Éric Duhaime a noon hour radio show on FM93 in Quebec City.

On June 7, 2022, it was announced that Drainville was running as a candidate for the CAQ in Lévis in the upcoming 2022 Quebec general election.[5] He was re-elected in the riding of Lévis and appointed Minister of education.

In April 2023, he announced plans to ban prayer in all provincial public schools.[6][7][8][9]

Electoral record

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2022 Quebec general election: Lévis
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Coalition Avenir Québec Bernard Drainville 18,051 48.79
Conservative Karine Laflamme 7,677 20.75
Parti Québécois Pierre-Gilles Morel 4,775 12.91
Québec solidaire Valérie Cayouette-Guilloteau 4,244 11.47
Liberal Richard Garon 1,899 5.13
Green Mehdi Lahlou 213 0.58
Climat Québec André Voyer 138 0.37
Total valid votes 36,997 98.64
Total rejected ballots 511 1.36
Turnout 37,508 73.73
Electors on the lists 50,875
2014 Quebec general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Parti Québécois Bernard Drainville 11,614 38.17 -8.94
Liberal Jean-Guy Tremblay 7,926 26.05 +8.51
Coalition Avenir Québec Guillaume Provencher 6,269 20.60 -1.02
Québec solidaire Carl Lévesque 3,518 11.56 +3.35
Green Catherine Lovatt-Smith 707 2.32 +0.35
Option nationale Fabien Villemaire 244 0.80 -1.73
Marxist–Leninist Pierre Chénier 107 0.35
Équipe Autonomiste Florent Portron 44 0.14
Total valid votes 30,429 98.09
Total rejected ballots 591 1.91 +0.44
Turnout 31,020 66.32 -5.55
Electors on the lists 46,770
Parti Québécois hold Swing -8.72
2012 Quebec general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Parti Québécois Bernard Drainville 15,506 47.10 -4.00
Coalition Avenir Québec Simon Jolin-Barrette 7,119 21.63 +10.30
Liberal Farida Chemmakh 5,773 17.54 -11.77
Québec solidaire Carl Lévesque 2,702 8.21 +3.83
Option nationale Olivier Chauvin 832 2.53
Green Mathieu Yargeau 648 1.97 -1.09
Coalition pour la constituante Jean Baillargeon 244 0.74
Parti indépendantiste Yves Ménard 94 0.29 -0.54
Total valid votes 32,918 98.54
Total rejected ballots 489 1.46
Turnout 33,407 71.88
Electors on the lists 46,478
Parti Québécois hold Swing -7.15


2008 Quebec general election: Marie-Victorin
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Parti Québécois Bernard Drainville 11,026 51.56 +11.96
Liberal Isabelle Mercille 6,185 28.92 +7.52
Action démocratique Roger Dagenais 2,369 11.08 -17.32
Québec solidaire Sebastien Robert 957 4.48 -0.60
Green Real Langelier 665 3.11 -1.64
Parti indépendantiste Yves Menard 182 0.85
Total valid votes 21,384 98.22
Total rejected ballots 388 1.78 +0.52
Turnout 21,772 53.29 -15.26
Electors on the lists 40,858
Parti Québécois hold Swing +2.22
2007 Quebec general election: Marie-Victorin
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Parti Québécois Bernard Drainville 11,055 39.61 -5.78
Action démocratique Roger Dagenais 7,927 28.40 +12.81
Liberal Nic Leblanc 5,974 21.40 -13.52
Québec solidaire Cyr François 1,418 5.08 +3.47
Green Réal Langelier 1,327 4.75
Bloc Pot Richard Lemagnifique 211 0.76 -0.89
Total valid votes 27,912 98.74
Total rejected ballots 357 1.26 -0.43
Turnout 28,269 68.54 +1.50
Electors on the lists 41,242
Parti Québécois hold Swing -9.30

Notes and references

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  1. ^ "Bernard Drainville - National Assembly of Québec". www.assnat.qc.ca.
  2. ^ "Bernard Drainville - Assemblée nationale du Québec".
  3. ^ "Bernard Drainville throws hat into ring to run for Parti Quebecois leadership". October 20, 2014.
  4. ^ "Bernard Drainville drops out of PQ leadership race to support Péladeau". Toronto Star. April 22, 2015. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  5. ^ "Quebecers not interested in sovereignty, says ex-PQ candidate Drainville, now running for Legault". CTV News Montreal. June 7, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  6. ^ "Muslim groups pledge to monitor Quebec ban on school prayer spaces | Globalnews.ca". Global News.
  7. ^ "Quebec Muslim associations denounce government ban on prayer rooms in schools". CBC. April 8, 2023. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  8. ^ "Quebec to ban prayer rooms in public schools, says only 'silent' praying allowed". montrealgazette.
  9. ^ "CityNews". montreal.citynews.ca. April 5, 2023.
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