The Right Honourable Roméo LeBlanc PC, CC, CMM, CD (born December 18, 1927 in Memramcook, New Brunswick) is a former Governor General of Canada.
LeBlanc was made Governor General on February 8, 1995, the first Acadian and the first from the Maritimes to hold that post. He resigned from that position in 1999, citing health reasons.
Earlier career
LeBlanc was a teacher, before becoming a journalist. After working for Radio-Canada, he served as press secretary for two Prime Ministers: Lester B. Pearson and Pierre Trudeau.
First elected to the House of Commons as a Liberal in 1972, he was minister of fisheries through most of the 1970s under Pierre Trudeau. Appointed to the Senate in 1984, he was appointed as its Speaker in 1993.
His appointment as Governor General by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was criticized as being little more than a patronage gift. In the 1993 Canadian election LeBlanc had been one of the chief architects of the Liberal Party's election strategy, and was one of the most fierce partisans. In 1995 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada.
His son, Dominic LeBlanc became a Liberal MP in 2000.
External links
Last updated: 06-20-2005 19:04:21
