Projet Montréal mayoral candidate Valérie Plante wants you to get to know her.
The working mother says when it comes time for voters to cast a ballot, there will be no confusing her with her opponent, incumbent mayor, Denis Coderre.
“Everything about him and I are different. How we came into politics, how we approach politics. He’s been doing politics for 30 years, it’s kind of the old-school way of doing politics,” she told Global’s senior anchor Jamie Orchard in an interview in downtown Montreal on Monday.
“I do politics because I care, ultimately what I want for my kids is what I want for Montrealers,” she said.
“A good place to live, secure ways to go around the city, more mobility options, ways to stay on the island. The way I approach politics is, what will benefit everyone?”
WATCH BELOW: Valérie Plante extended interview
Improving public transportation is top of the list for Plante, who says all Montrealers have to deal with traffic right now whether they are in their vehicles or on a bicycle.
READ MORE: Projet Montréal wants to build city’s first urban national park in Pierrefonds
She wants to deal with congestion by investing in public transit. But, Plante says she won’t raise taxes to improve public transportation options for Montrealers.
“Montrealers pay enough tax, there’s no way we are planning on raising taxes so far. I think it’s more a question of priorities and political will,” explained Plante, citing Formula E and the city’s 375 anniversary celebrations as areas where Coderre’s administration has invested funds without adequate public consultation.
READ MORE: Mayor Denis Coderre on the defence; calls Formula E an investment
“In the last mandate, my opponent made choices… which cost us so much money. Imagine what we could have done with that.”
Denis Coderre meets with Orchard to talk priorities and campaigning for his next mandate on Tuesday, while Coaltion Montreal’s mayoral candidate Jean Fortier is scheduled to drop by Global Montreal Studios on Wednesday.