More women are entering municipal politics, but elected officials are facing more psychological harassment and even intimidation, according to a new report from the Quebec Federation of Municipalities (FQM).
This report, which surveyed 615 elected representatives, follows a similar survey done by the FQM back in 2017. Since then, the number of women elected as municipal councillors went up by about 7 per cent. Today, almost 40 per cent of councillors in Quebec are women.
There has also been a notable increase in the number of women elected as mayors. Nearly a quarter of Quebec municipalities are headed by women. In their last municipal elections, five major cities elected a woman mayor: Montreal, Longueuil, Gatineau, Sherbrooke and Saguenay.
“It’s a big wind of change,” said Line Fréchette, mayor of Saint-Majorique-de-Grantham, where four of the six councillors are women.
She says when she started in politics more than 10 years ago, there were only two women on council — and priorities have shifted as more women got a seat at the table.
“We used to talk more about asphalt!” she said.
“Now we’re talking about the well-being of our population, about healthy lifestyles.”
Marylin Nadeau, the mayor of Saint-Jean-Baptiste, where there is parity between the six municipal councillors, agrees. She says both men and women’s priorities increasingly align.
Increased harassment
Psychological harassment is not only more present than ever before in the lives of elected representatives, but it also remains the issue most often highlighted by respondents, according to the report.
Almost 40 per cent of respondents said they had experienced harassment at least once in their political career. This compares with 28 per cent in the FQM’s previous report in 2017.
According to the document, young elected officials and mayors are more likely to be targeted
“The population is less patient than it used to be; it wants answers immediately. They’re asking for change, but they’re afraid of change,” says Fréchette.
Pleasing all residents is a difficult task, she says.
Nadeau believes citizens sometimes misunderstand the role of elected representatives. She would like to see more public education in this area.
“I think that in the past, the ball hasn’t been jumped on,” she said.
Elected representatives in small municipalities are also having more and more face-to-face altercations with citizens and fellow elected representatives due to proximity.
The recent decision by Pierre Tremblay, the mayor of Les Éboulements, Que., — a municipality of 1,300 people in Charlevoix — to step down echoes this reality.
“You have to be psychologically and mentally able to face the music with my council, with my population. […] I reached my saturation and tolerance level,” he said earlier this week.
Another factor at work is the legal framework for elected representatives, which is different from that for municipal employees. Elected officials are not subject to the regulations on harassment in the workplace established by municipalities to protect their employees from citizens and maintain a respectful work environment, the report states.
Work-life balance
The report shows there’s a growing dissatisfaction with work-life balance, regardless of gender. Some 40 per cent of male respondents said they were experiencing difficulties adjusting both work and family life.
The report suggests that this growing concern among male elected representatives is contributing to the upward trend in the number of women being elected.
WATCH | Quebec elects more young mayors:
Meet the millennials running three major Quebec cities — and doing it differently
4 months ago
Duration 3:50
The mayors of Laval, Longueuil, and Sherbrooke, Que., all age 35 and under, are changing the way cities are run and challenging the provincial government along the way.
“It would seem that the situation in 2023 is the result of a deterioration in the situation of men with regard to reconciling family and work, which has led, in a way, to a catching-up process,” the report says.
The report also says this trend is possibly due to more awareness on the part of men.
“There are more young people in politics. […] Most of them have young children to look after,” said Fréchette.
FREDERICTON – A look at David Coon, leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick:
Born: Oct. 28, 1956.
Early years: Born in Toronto and raised in Montreal, he spent about three decades as an environmental advocate.
Education: A trained biologist, he graduated with a bachelor of science from McGill University in Montreal in 1978.
Family: He and his wife Janice Harvey have two daughters, Caroline and Laura.
Before politics: Worked as an environmental educator, organizer, activist and manager for 33 years, mainly with the Conservation Council of New Brunswick.
Politics: Joined the Green Party of Canada in May 2006 and was elected leader of the New Brunswick Green Party in September 2012. Won a seat in the legislature in 2014 — a first for the province’s Greens.
Quote: “It was despicable. He’s clearly decided to take the low road in this campaign, to adopt some Trump-lite fearmongering.” — David Coon on Sept. 12, 2024, reacting to Blaine Higgs’s claim that the federal government had decided to send 4,600 asylum seekers to New Brunswick.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
FREDERICTON – A look at Blaine Higgs, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.
Born: March 1, 1954.
Early years: The son of a customs officer, he grew up in Forest City, N.B., near the Canada-U.S. border.
Education: Graduated from the University of New Brunswick with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1977.
Family: Married his high-school sweetheart, Marcia, and settled in Saint John, N.B., where they had four daughters: Lindsey, Laura, Sarah and Rachel.
Before politics: Hired by Irving Oil a week after he graduated from university and was eventually promoted to director of distribution. Worked for 33 years at the company.
Politics: Elected to the legislature in 2010 and later served as finance minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier David Alward. Elected Tory leader in 2016 and has been premier since 2018.
Quote: “I’ve always felt parents should play the main role in raising children. No one is denying gender diversity is real. But we need to figure out how to manage it.” — Blaine Higgs in a year-end interview in 2023, explaining changes to school policies about gender identity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
OTTAWA – The pressing issues of climate change and food security join more familiar ones like violent extremism and espionage on a new list of Canada’s intelligence priorities.
The federal government says publishing the list of priorities for the first time is an important step toward greater transparency.
The government revises the priorities every two years, based on recommendations from the national security adviser and the intelligence community.
Once the priorities are reviewed and approved by the federal cabinet, key ministers issue directives to federal agencies that produce intelligence.
Among the priorities are the security of global health, food, water and biodiversity, as well as the issues of climate change and global sustainability.
The new list also includes foreign interference and malign influence, cyberthreats, infrastructure security, Arctic sovereignty, border integrity and transnational organized crime.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
