Bourassa

Bourassa is a federal electoral district in northeastern Montreal, encompassing the borough of Montréal-Nord and the eastern portion of the Sault-au-Récollet neighbourhood in the borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville. The riding sits along the Rivière des Prairies on the northern edge of the Island of Montreal. Named after former Quebec premier Robert Bourassa, the district has been represented federally since 1968.

Candidates

Denis Coderre (Liberal) — First elected in the 1997 federal election after earlier unsuccessful bids in 1988, 1990, and 1993, Coderre had represented Bourassa for five consecutive terms heading into 2011. A graduate of the Université de Montréal in political science with an MBA from the University of Ottawa, he served as Secretary of State for Amateur Sport, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration under Jean Chrétien, and President of the Queen’s Privy Council under Paul Martin. After the Liberals moved to opposition in 2006, Coderre served as the party’s defence critic. He had deep roots in Montréal-Nord, having grown up there after his family moved from Joliette in 1973.

Julie Demers (NDP) — Demers was a community activist in Montréal-Nord known for her volunteer work in the neighbourhood, including managing her son’s hockey team and involvement in local greening initiatives. She was part of the wave of NDP candidates who ran in Quebec during the 2011 campaign under Jack Layton’s leadership.

Daniel Mailhot (Bloc Québécois) — Mailhot was the Bloc Québécois candidate in Bourassa. He had previously run for the Bloc in the riding in the 2006 federal election.

David Azoulay (Conservative) — Azoulay was the Conservative Party candidate in Bourassa for the 2011 election.

Tiziana Centazzo ran for the Green Party and Geneviève Royer for the Marxist-Leninist Party.

About the Riding

Bourassa is centred on Montréal-Nord, one of the most densely populated boroughs on the Island of Montreal with a population of approximately 84,000 as of 2011. The borough is home to one of the largest Haitian communities in Canada, and the riding is characterized by significant linguistic and cultural diversity, with French, Haitian Creole, Arabic, Spanish, and Italian widely spoken. The area includes a mix of residential neighbourhoods ranging from modest apartment complexes to middle-class single-family homes, with a notable concentration of residents living below the poverty line alongside more established middle-class enclaves. Major commercial arteries such as Boulevard Henri-Bourassa and Boulevard Pie-IX serve as the neighbourhood’s economic spine, hosting retail establishments, restaurants, and service businesses. As a largely residential borough, many residents commute elsewhere on the island for employment. Federal issues of local concern heading into 2011 included immigration policy, affordable housing, public transit infrastructure, and community safety, the last of which drew attention after incidents of police-community tension in 2008.