A high-profile Montreal police officer is reportedly set to run for the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) in a riding just south of Montreal.
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Montreal La Presse and Radio-Canada both say Ian Lafrenière, who has spent nearly two decades as one of the force’s most prominent faces, will make the announcement official in the coming days.
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Lafrenière is an inspector who ran the communications department and is currently on leave from the police force. He is on vacation abroad until next week.
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There have been persistent rumours since July that Lafrenière would jump into provincial politics.
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The CAQ has been leading in recent polls ahead of the Oct. 1 election.
Lafrenière will reportedly run in Vachon, which has been held mostly by the Parti Québécois (PQ) since 1994.
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It is currently represented by Martine Ouellet, an Independent who was a longtime PQ member before her brief, chaotic stint as leader of the Bloc Québécois.
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She resigned in June after suffering a crushing defeat during a Bloc leadership vote and announced around that time she wouldn’t run again provincially in 2018.
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