Valérie Plante, Montreal’s first female mayor, was sworn in Thursday at a ceremony at Marché Bonsecours in Montreal’s Old Port.
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The ceremony started with a performance by the Buffalo Hat Singers, chanting a song “in honour of women.”
The councillors and mayors of the city’s boroughs were then brought on stage as the audience cheered loudly.
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Plante followed, welcomed by a standing ovation as she entered the room and joined her colleagues.
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In her first speech as mayor, Plante brought up public transit — one of the main issues she campaigned on.
“I know what you’re all living, because I live it too,” she said.
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Plante also reiterated her promise to improve housing and public services across the island.
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“You may not know it yet, but I’m a fighter. For those who do not know me, my nickname is the ‘happy warrior,'” she said, laughing.
“I may have a new role as mayor, but I will fight for you.”
The 43-year-old mother of two caused a major surprise when she won more than 51 per cent of the vote on Nov. 5 to defeat incumbent Denis Coderre.
Plante, who was born in Rouyn-Noranda in northwestern Quebec, spent a year as a teenager in North Bay, Ont., to learn English.
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She moved to Montreal at the age of 19 and attended university, where she received degrees in anthropology and museology.
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She then worked for a number of non-profit organizations.
Plante entered municipal politics in 2013 when she won a council seat and she was elected leader of the left-leaning party Projet Montréal three years later.
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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— with files from The Canadian Press.
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