Ruth Ellen Brosseau's attempted comeback, after two years running a farm, is too close to call
Ruth Ellen Brosseau, who famously went from bartending to Parliament, has proven once again that she has staying power in her rural Quebec riding, though her hoped-for comeback is still too close to call.
Two years after losing her seat, locals know Brosseau better than ever, many say. She's been busy since 2019, when the NDP MP lost in Berthier-Maskinongé to the Bloc Québécois: having married a pork farmer, she's been working on their farm.
When COVID-19 hit, sending local farmers into a tailspin, she started an online farmers' market co-op system to help them sell their goods.
As of 1:45 a.m., Brosseau's race was one of the few in the country that's too close to call. She and the Bloc incumbent, Yves Perron, were 1,008 votes apart, with Brosseau in second place. She lost to Perron in 2019 by just 1,500 votes.
This race may not be decided for days: an NDP spoesperson said there were about 900 to 1,000 mail-in ballots cast in the riding.
Brosseau's story has fascinated Canadians, but the latest chapter has taken place off the national stage, deep in her heavily agricultural riding.
She first came to Ottawa in 2011's so-called NDP "orange crush" surprise sweep of Quebec. She had volunteered to put her name on the ballot in Berthier-Maskinongé but, she said at the time, never expected to win.
In 2015, however, her win was earned: while most of Quebec's other NDP MPs lost their seats in a red wave of Liberal support, Brosseau stayed standing.
In 2019, she lost to the Bloc Québécois. This election brought her back, though she announced her candidacy relatively late, and she later explained why: she had taken on new responsibilities, at a farm, and wasn't sure she could step away.
She held her election-night party at the charcuterie shop at this farm, her husband's, called Le rieur sanglier, which means "the laughing boar." She's been working there for the last 20 months.
When first elected in 2011, the then-single mother didn't even speak French. But putting down such deep roots in Berthier-Maskinongé has kept her very popular, and still a public figure, supporters told CTV.
Many in the riding still call her with constituent issues, they said, despite knowing that she hasn't been in office since 2019.
Her hurdle this election, they said, was similar to the last election: her party leader, with many in the riding not sure of their feelings about Jagmeet Singh.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Train derailed in Sarnia after colliding with a truck
Police are investigating after a transport truck collided with a train in Sarnia.
Fewer medical students going into family medicine contributing to doctor shortage
As some family doctors are retiring and others are moving away from family medicine, there are fewer medical students to take their place.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.