Meet some of the new Quebec MPs heading to Ottawa after a hard-fought election

A well-known environmentalist, a Beauce dairy farmerand a Montreal city councillor are among 30 new members of Parliamentheadingto Ottawa from Quebec after a hotly contested campaign that saw a reworking of the province'selectoral map.

The surge of support for the Bloc Qubcoismeans 22 new Bloc MPswill take their seats in the House of Commons, along with seven new Liberals and one Conservative.

Here's a look at some of the noteworthy new parliamentarians who will represent Quebecers.

The longtime environmentalist

Steven Guilbeault says he first stood up for his beliefs at the age of five, when he climbed up a tree in his hometown of La Tuque, Que., in an attempt to thwart a land-clearing developer's plans.

He lost that fight, but his passion forprotecting the environmentwas born. Now, four and a half decades later, the co-founder of quiterre and former Quebec lieutenant for Greenpeace has traded indecades of environmental activism for a Liberal seat representingthe downtown Montreal riding of LaurierSaint-Marie.

"The environment was top of mind" throughout the campaign, Guilbeaultsaid, recounting his conversations with thousands of voters.

He listed other issues: social housing, the fight against poverty.

"I will be an ally for these organizations and people who want these things to get better in the riding."

Despite his high profile, Guilbeault's victory was no sure thing. He faced criticismabout how he could back the federal Liberal Party's decision to purchase the Trans Mountain Pipeline.

There is a lot of speculation about whether Guilbeault willbe offered the environment post in a Trudeau cabinet and if so, what he would do about the pipeline question. For now, all the newly elected MP will say is that if he's offered any cabinet position, he'd "seriously" consider accepting it.

Gilles Duceppe's son

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppeisfollowing in his father's footsteps, after winning the riding of Lac-Saint Jean for the Bloc Qubcois.

Gilles Duceppe, who was a panelist on Radio-Canada on election night, spoke tohis son on live television to congratulate him for trouncing the Liberal incumbent, Richard Hbert, by more than 10,000 votes.

"You were the son of Gilles Duceppe. I was the son of Jean Duceppe. He became my father. Now, I'm going to be called Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe's father," Duceppe told his son, his eyes shining with pride.

Now the political neophyteis looking ahead.

"Tomorrow morning, the real work begins," Brunelle-Duceppesaid Monday. "Nowwe have to go to Ottawa."

Giant killer in the Beauce

Richard Lehoux, a former mayor who comes from a long line of dairy farmers, managed to take down Maxime Bernier in Beauce.

Bernierwasa longtime Conservative MPbefore forming the People's Party of Canada last year after losing the Conservativeleadership race to Andrew Scheer.

Lehoux told Radio-Canada Tuesday his win in the riding shows the beliefs of people in Beaucedon't align with those of Bernier andthe People's Party of Canada.

"I often heard thatin the field: 'I do not think it's us.We do not recognize ourselves [in Bernier's ideas],'"Lehouxsaid."As Beauce residentmyself, we are people who are proud, who are welcoming, who are warm."

But the longtime mayor of Saint-Elzar, a town of 2,000 in Quebec's Chaudire-Appalaches region, saidhe did not expect to beat Bernier bysuch a large majority. Lehouxtook nearly 39 per cent of the vote.

Lehoux is alsothe former president of the Quebec federation of municipalities (FQM).

A different kind of victory

The Liberals' star candidate in the bellwether riding of Brome-Mississquoi, Lyne Bessette, is headed to Ottawa after a tight contest against the Bloc Qubcois.

Bessette, a former professional cyclist who competed in the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics, knows all about tight contests.

"When you win something, whether it be a race or an election campaign, you are carried away by emotion proud of what you accomplished," she said after her hard-fought win.

Bessette, who was born in Knowlton and now lives in Sutton, says the environment, and services for seniors and youth are key issues.

Her priority right now is "to open the officeand be there for people," she told Radio-Canada.

Activist in Pierrefonds-Dollard

Activist Sameer Zuberi was elected in Pierrefonds-Dollard, a Liberal stronghold inMontreal's West Island which has a significant English-speaking community.

Zuberi, a Projet Montralcandidate in the Bois-de-Liesse district in 2013, trained as a lawyer at Universit de Montral and worked most recently as a diversity and engagement officer for McGill University's Faculty of Medicine.

As a spokesperson for the Canadian Muslim Forum,Zubericalled on Canadians toresist intolerance following the Quebec City mosque shooting in 2017.

During the election campaign, the Conservative Party accused Zuberi of anti-Semitism for his role in a student leadership conflict in 2003, and criticized comments Zuberi made on Facebook in 2011 related to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S. Zuberi defended himself on both counts.

New Liberal moves from municipal to federal politics

Liberal Patricia Lattanzio dominated in the riding of Saint-Lonard-Saint-Michel, taking 61 per cent of the vote.

Before becoming a Montreal city councillor with Ensemble Montralin2015, Lattanzio, a lawyer, served as an English Montreal School Board commissioner.

Hassam Guillet, dumped by the Liberal Party over allegations that he'd made anti-Semitic comments in the past, ran as an Independent. He came in fourth.

Former federal adviser takes Hochelaga

Liberal Soraya Martinez took the seat in Hochelagain one of the tightest races in the province, beating Bloc Qubcois candidate Simon Marchandby just over 300 votes.

The riding was swept up in the Orange Wave of 2011 and remained an NDP seat until Martinez was elected Monday.

"I campaigned on four themes: housing, food accessibility, transport and change," said Martinez after her win.

"I am a hand-working woman, and I understand the challenges people face as the cost of living goes up and incomes don't match.

She plans to make public transit her priority.

Another former Montreal city councillor and member of the city's executive committee, Martinez has been involved in city politics for more than 10 years.

In 2015, Martinez led Mlanie Joly's municipal election campaign.

Before seeking the Liberal nomination in Hochelaga, she served as senior adviser to Joly, who served as federal heritage minister from 2015 until 2018.

Star NDP candidate knocked out by Bloc

In Berthier-Maskinong, theNDP's popular incumbent,Ruth Ellen Brosseau, was beat out by the president of the Bloc Qubcois, candidate Yves Perron.

Brosseau and Perron were neck and neck in the polls in the last days of the campaign, but Perron won by more than 1,000 votes.

Perron, a teacher from Saint-Flix-de-Valois, lost to Brosseau in 2015.

"I had a feeling this time would be the right one," Perron said after he was elected. "I guarantee, you have someone who will listen to you. Working for you: that's why we're here."

The last Bloc member to represent the riding of Berthier-Maskinong was Guy Andr, from 2004 to 2011.