Upstart mayoral candidate Melanie Joly, who surprised many in her impressive recent bid to become Montreal mayor, is stepping down as party leader.
The Real Change for Montreal Party announced that City Councillor Lorraine Pagé will be filling Joly's shoes.
"I profoundly believe that the party needs an elected leader to take part in the debate on the future of Montreal," Joly said in a press release issued Friday.
"I would have liked to have assumed the role but nothing suggests that I'll get a chance to do that in the near future."
Pagé is a city councillor for Ahuntsic Cartierville. She came to prominence as the head of a teachers union, a role she was forced to quit after being charged with shoplifting in 1999, a charge she was acquitted of on appeal.
Joly - who came in second in her maiden mayoral run with 26.5 percent of the vote - said that she will remain party president.
