Russell Copeman

Russell Copeman (born April 1, 1960) is a Canadian politician. He was a Montreal City Councillor and was the borough mayor for Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grace from November 14, 2013 to November 16, 2017. He also sat on the Montreal Executive Committee, and was responsible for housing, urban planning, buildings, real estate transactions and strategies, and the Office of Public Consultation.

Russell Copeman
Russell Copeman in 2016.
Borough mayor of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
In office November 14, 2013 – November 16, 2017
Preceded by	Lionel Perez (interim)
Succeeded by	Sue Montgomery
MNA for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
In office September 12, 1994 – October 22, 2008
Preceded by	Gordon Atkinson
Succeeded by	Kathleen Weil
Personal details
Born	April 1, 1960 Montreal, Quebec
Political party	Coalition Montréal (municipal) Quebec Liberal Party (provincial)
Education	McGill University Concordia University

He was the Liberal Member of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNA) representing the riding of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce from 1994 to 2008.

Education

Born in Montreal, Quebec, Copeman graduated from Vanier College and received a Bachelor of Arts with honours in political science from McGill University in 1983. While at McGill, in 1982 he was the Prime Minister of the Parlement Jeunesse du Québec, then known as the Quebec Youth Parliament.[1] He attended Concordia University in 1984 where he pursued graduate studies in public administration.

Provincial politics

From 1986 to 1988, he was the Assistant Director of the Education Program, Director of Social Affairs and Director of the Education Program for Alliance Quebec.

In 1989, he was the political aide to the Minister of Energy and Resources. From 1989 to 1991, he was the Quebec Liberal Party coordinator and from 1991 to 1994 he was the constituency assistant to former Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa.

In the 1994 election, he was elected to the National Assembly in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. He was re-elected in the 1998, 2003 and 2007 elections. He was chair of the Standing Committee on Social Affairs from June 2003 to February 2007. He was the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health and Social Services. Active in National Assembly relations with the United States he was the 2007 Chairman of the Council of State Government's Eastern Regional Conference.

Copeman resigned on October 22, 2008 after accepting a job as Associate Vice-President at Concordia University.[2]

Montreal municipal politics

Copeman ran as a candidate for Coalition Montréal as part of the November 3, 2013 municipal election and was elected to Montreal City Council as borough mayor of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.[3] On November 18, 2013, he was appointed to the Montreal Executive Committee by Mayor Denis Coderre, on which he is responsible for housing, urban planning, buildings, real estate transactions and strategies, and the Office of Public Consultation.[4]

In November 2016, Copeman became a part of Équipe Denis Coderre pour Montréal.[5][6]

Personal life

He is married and has three children.

Electoral record (partial)

2013 Montreal municipal election: Borough Mayor, Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Coalition Montréal	Russell Copeman	10,482	29.42	–
	Projet Montréal	Michael Simkin	9,348	26.24	+0.23
	Vrai changement	Andrew Ross	7,918	22.22	–
	Équipe Denis Coderre	Kevin Copps	7,880	22.12	–
Total valid votes			35,628	97.23	–
Total rejected ballots			1,014	2.77	–
Turnout			36,642	38.74	+2.65
Electors on the lists			94,587	–	–
Source: Election results, 2013, City of Montreal.

2007 Quebec general election: Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Russell Copeman	14,077	61.43	−13.16
	Green	Peter McQueen	3,605	15.73	+11.15
	Parti Québécois	Sophie Fréchette	2,425	10.58	−3.07
	Action démocratique	Julie Clouatre	1,649	7.20	+2.37
	Québec solidaire	David Mandel	1,091	4.76	-
	Marxist–Leninist	Linda Sullivan	69	0.30	+0.02
Total valid votes			22,916	99.41
Rejected and declined votes			137	0.59
Turnout			23,053	58.52	−3.28
Electors on the lists			39,392

References

1. Parlement Jeunesse du Québec
2. LCN Mise à jour : 22 October 2008
3. http://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/1046029/russell-copeman-se-joint-au-parti-de-denis-coderre/
4. "Composition du comité exécutif - Un nouveau chapitre pour Montréal". CNW Group. 18 November 2013. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
5. http://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/1046029/russell-copeman-se-joint-au-parti-de-denis-coderre/
6. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/russell-copeman-joins-denis-coderre-1.3837545

External links

• "Biography". Dictionnaire des parlementaires du Québec de 1792 à nos jours (in French). National Assembly of Quebec.