Chicoutimi—Le Fjord

Chicoutimi—Le Fjord is a federal electoral district in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, roughly 200 kilometres north of Quebec City. The riding encompasses the northern portion of the Chicoutimi borough and the entirety of the La Baie borough within the city of Saguenay, as well as the municipalities of L’Anse-Saint-Jean, Petit-Saguenay, Rivière-Éternité, Ferland-et-Boilleau, and Saint-Félix-d’Otis along the Saguenay Fjord. The Saguenay River, one of Quebec’s great waterways, runs through the southern part of the riding.

Candidates

Dany Morin (NDP) — Born in 1985, Morin was a chiropractor from the Saguenay region. He ran as the NDP candidate in Chicoutimi—Le Fjord as part of Jack Layton’s 2011 Quebec campaign, challenging a three-term Bloc Québécois incumbent in a region that had been a Bloc stronghold since the party’s founding.

Robert Bouchard (Bloc Québécois) — Born in Saint-Émond, Quebec, in 1943, Bouchard had represented the riding since his first election in 2004 and was seeking a fourth term. During his time in Parliament, he served as the Bloc’s critic for National Revenue.

Carol Néron (Conservative) — Néron was a former editorialist for Le Quotidien, the daily newspaper serving the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region. He entered the 2011 race as the Conservative candidate after being confirmed at a nomination meeting earlier that spring.

Marc Pettersen (Liberal) — Pettersen was the Liberal Party candidate in the riding for the 2011 election.

Charles-Olivier Bolduc-Tremblay ran for the Green Party and Marielle Couture for the Rhinoceros Party.

About the Riding

Chicoutimi—Le Fjord is situated in the heart of the Saguenay region, anchored by the city of Saguenay, which was formed in 2002 through the amalgamation of Chicoutimi, Jonquière, La Baie, and several smaller municipalities. The city of Saguenay had a population of approximately 144,000 in 2011, with the riding covering the Chicoutimi and La Baie boroughs. The regional economy has long been shaped by the aluminum industry — Rio Tinto Alcan’s Grande-Baie smelter in the La Baie borough produces over 220,000 tonnes of aluminum annually and employs more than 600 workers. The pulp-and-paper industry, historically the region’s other major employer, had experienced significant decline by 2011. Tourism is a growing sector, centred on the Saguenay Fjord National Park, established in 1983 to showcase the spectacular fjord landscape, as well as outdoor recreation along the Saguenay River. The municipalities along the fjord — L’Anse-Saint-Jean, Petit-Saguenay, and Rivière-Éternité — are small, scenic communities dependent on forestry and tourism. The riding is overwhelmingly francophone. Federal issues of concern heading into 2011 included employment insurance reform for seasonal workers, support for the aluminum and forestry sectors, and infrastructure investment in the region.