Jean-Guy Dagenais

Jean-Guy Dagenais (born February 2, 1950) is a Canadian politician from Quebec. He was appointed to the Senate of Canada on January 17, 2012, by Stephen Harper after losing in the 2011 Canadian federal election running as a Conservative Candidate in Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot. He represents the Senate division of Victoria (Quebec).

The Honourable

Jean-Guy Dagenais
Senator for Victoria, Quebec
Assumed office
January 17, 2012
Nominated byStephen Harper
Appointed byDavid Johnston
Preceded byFrancis Fox
Personal details
Born (1950-02-02) February 2, 1950
Political partyCanadian Senators Group (2019-present)
Other political
affiliations		Conservative

Political career

Dagenais ran for a seat to the House of Commons of Canada under the Conservative banner in the 2011 Canadian federal election in Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot. He was defeated finishing third place out of five candidates behind winner Marie-Claude Morin and defeated incumbent Ève-Mary Thaï Thi Lac.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper advised Governor General David Johnston to appoint Dagenais to the Senate of Canada on January 6, 2012,[1] and he was subsequently appointed on January 17. On November 18, 2019, Dagenais announced that he was quitting the Conservative's Senate caucus to join the Canadian Senators Group due to disagreements with the leadership of Andrew Scheer, concerns over the former's social views and the "low importance" attached to Quebec voters by party leadership as the reasons for his defection.[2][3][4] However, he is keeping his individual membership to the Conservative Party itself.[3]

In January 2021, Dagenais was in Florida overseeing "urgent work" on a property he owned, despite public health advice to avoid non-essential international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.[5]

Senate scandal

In response to ongoing criticism of the Senate stemming from the Mike Duffy scandal, Dagenais railed against NDP MP Charmaine Borg, in a letter to the House of Commons accusing her of being a whiny, useless puppet who would not have won election if not for sympathy for Jack Layton, and of ignorance of the constitution for her support of the NDP position on abolishing the Senate. Dagenais was unapologetic for his insults and for his incorrect claim that Borg was wrong to note that the NDP supports abolition, both despite the fact that he himself was appointed to Senate after losing an election, and was the one who was wrong about NDP policy.[6] In response, Borg launched an official complaint against the Senator.[7]

Electoral record
2011 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
New DemocraticMarie-Claude Morin26,96352.4+38.4
Bloc QuébécoisÈve-Mary Thaï Thi Lac12,65124.6-22.7
ConservativeJean-Guy Dagenais8,10815.7-5.5
LiberalDenis Vallée2,7845.4-8.4
GreenJohany Beaudoin-Bussières9941.9-1.8
Total valid votes/Expense limit 51,500 100.0
Total rejected ballots 863 1.6–
Turnout 52,363 66.2–
Eligible voters 79,085 ––
New Democratic gain from Bloc Québécois Swing +30.55

References
  1. "Harper appoints 7 new senators". CBC News. January 6, 2012.
  2. Tasker, John Paul (18 November 2019). "Two more senators defect to upstart group, one citing Scheer's leadership". CBC News. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  3. Gilmore, Rachel (November 18, 2019). "Senator leaves Conservative caucus citing Scheer's socially conservative views | CTV News". CTV News. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
  4. "Tory Senator Ditches Caucus Over Scheer's Views On Abortion, Gay Marriage". HuffPost. November 18, 2019. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
  5. Dickson, Janice (January 13, 2021). "Senators Tannas, Verner and Dagenais go to U.S. despite COVID-19 travel warnings". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  6. "Tory senators blast NDP for advocating Senate abolition". CBC News. The Canadian Press. December 7, 2013. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  7. "NDP MP Charmaine Borg formally complains about 'misogynistic' attack from Tory senator". Macleans.ca. December 9, 2013. Retrieved July 18, 2014.


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