Gerald Joseph Doucet, QC (May 4, 1937 – November 23, 2017) was a Canadian politician and lobbyist. He represented the electoral district of Richmond in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1963 to 1974, as a Progressive Conservative.[1]
Gerald J. Doucet | |
|---|---|
| MLA for Richmond | |
| In office 1963–1974 | |
| Preceded by | Earl Urquhart |
| Succeeded by | Gaston LeBlanc |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 4, 1937 Grand Étang, Nova Scotia |
| Died | November 23, 2017 (aged 80) Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
Born in Grand Étang, Nova Scotia in 1937,[2] Doucet graduated from St. Francis Xavier University in 1958, and went on to earn a law degree from Dalhousie University in 1961.[2]
Doucet was first elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in the 1963 general election, defeating Liberal leader Earl Urquhart by 83 votes in the Richmond riding.[3] He was re-elected in 1967[4] and 1970.[5] He served in the Executive Council of Nova Scotia as Provincial Secretary,[6] and Minister of Education.[2] When appointed in 1964, Doucet was the first Acadian cabinet minister in the province's history.[7]
Doucet ran for leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia at the party's 1971 leadership convention,[8] finishing second to John Buchanan.[9]
Starting in 1984, the year he wrote Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Agreement: One Year Later, Doucet was a member of the successful but sometimes controversial Ottawa consulting firm Government Consultants International (GCI), along with Frank Moores, Francis Fox, and Gary Ouellet (The Insiders, by John Sawatsky, 1987; On The Take, by Stevie Cameron, 1994).
In 2004 Doucet published his biography, Acadian Footprints.
Doucet was the brother of Fred Doucet, who served as Brian Mulroney's first Chief of Staff when he became leader of the federal Progressive Conservative Party in 1983, and served on his staff in the Prime Minister's Office while Mulroney was Prime Minister from 1984 to 1993. His daughter Michelle Doucet is Assistant Superintendent, Corporate Services sector, at the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI).[10]
Doucet died in Halifax, Nova Scotia on November 23, 2017.[11][12]
References
edit- ^ "Electoral History for Richmond" (PDF). Nova Scotia Legislative Library. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-04-07. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
- ^ a b c Elliott, Shirley B. (1984). The Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758–1983 : a biographical directory. Public Archives of Nova Scotia. p. 60. ISBN 0-88871-050-X. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
- ^ "Returns of General Election for the House of Assembly 1963" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. 1963. p. 71. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
- ^ "Returns of General Election for the House of Assembly 1967" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. 1967. p. 74. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
- ^ "Returns of General Election for the House of Assembly 1970" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. 1970. p. 77. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
- ^ "N.S. cabinet is reshuffled by Stanfield". The Globe and Mail. July 1, 1964.
- ^ Meek, Jim (December 21, 2012). "Welcome to the Golden Age — let's celebrate it". The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
- ^ "Nova Scotia's Conservatives seeking new leader in a quieter kind of campaign". The Globe and Mail. February 13, 1971.
- ^ "N.S. Tories swing to right with election of Buchanan as leader". The Globe and Mail. March 8, 1971.
- ^ Institutions, Office of the Superintendent of Financial. "Michelle Doucet". www.osfi-bsif.gc.ca. Retrieved 2018-09-08.
- ^ "Longtime Richmond MLA Gerald Doucet dies at 80". CBC News. November 24, 2017. Retrieved 2017-11-25.
- ^ "Cape Breton politician known for his ties to Strait area". Cape Breton Post. November 24, 2017. Retrieved 2017-11-25.
Further reading
edit- Doucet, Gerald (2004). Acadian Footprints: The Roots and Reflections of Gérald (Gerry) Doucet. Moncton: Faye Editions. ISBN 2921824329