'King' Rgis Labeaume keeps tight hold on Quebec City council

Rgis Labeaumeis stillthe "king" of Quebec City, but he took a slight hit in Sunday's election.

He was elected toa fourth mandatewith 55per cent of the voteadecrease of nearly 20 percentage points comparedto his last election in 2013.

Labeaumesaid he was more than happy with the result, sayingit shows that citizens in the provincial capital still supporthis vision for the city after a decade in power.

"I know some politicians who would dream [of getting] 55 per cent of the vote, they would tradethat with me easily,'' Labeaumesaid moments after his victory speech.

Right-leaningparty becomes official opposition

The 61-year-old willface off with a new opponentat city hall.

The team of mayoral candidateJean-FranoisGosselin,Qubec21, managed to elect two councillors.

Gosselin will take the place of his running mate Nancy Piuze, along with Murielle Gagnon who won in the Montcalm Saint-Sacrement district.

Gosselin said while he was disappointed he won't see more of his colleagues sworn in, the election of a pair of themwas a first step into city hall.

"The work starts tomorrow morning to build our party and win in four years," Gosselin told supporters after the results were announced.

Gurette taking step back

The leader of Dmocratie QubecAnne Gurette was unable to make any headway in theelection.

Only her co-candidate Jean Rousseau was elected in the Cap-Aux-Diamants district.

The 52-year-old said she needed to take some time to think before deciding whether she wouldremain atcity councilbut was not writing off the future of the party she founded in 2012.

"I saw lots of people here who were very motivated to keep the party alive and be prepared for the next election," Gurette said.

The working relationship betweenGuretteandLabeaumeover the years has been tense.

Gurettehas often criticizedLabeaume'sabrasive style and his approach to citizen participation.

Both entered municipal politicsin 2007, whenLabeaumewon thebyelectionto replace then-mayorAndreBoucher, who died suddenly in herSainte-Foyhome.

Gurettewon thecitycouncillorseat forMontcalmin thatbyelectionand has beenat city hall ever since.

Transportation at heart of campaign

Transportation was a key issue in the campaign, partly due to Gosselin, who tapped into the frustration of many citizens.

Gosselinevenintegratedthe issueinto hisslogan, saying during theOct. 17 debatethat"a vote forGosselinwas a vote for the third link."

Buildinga third bridge or atunnelbetweenQubecCity andLvishas been a hot topic for several years, an idea some say would be a costly and ineffective way to dissipate traffic jams.

Others see it as the only option to relieve the pressure on commuters who rely onthePierre-Laporteand Quebec bridges.

After seeing his rapid-bus transit project fall apart only months ago,Labeaumeargued that he would need time to come up with a new pitch.

Inhis victory speech,Labeaume promised he would start working on a public transit project on Monday morning.

In 2013, 18 of the 21 citycouncillorswere with quipeLabeaume.

That dropped to 17 with this election, with Yvon Bussires winning a seat as independent in the Montcalm-Saint-Sacrament district.

Rgis Labeaume's track record

2017

Percentage of the vote:55.3

Closestopponent:Jean-Franois Gosselin,27.6 per cent of vote

Voter turnout: 50.7 per cent

2013

Percentage of the vote:74.07

Closestopponent:DavidLemelin,24.03 per cent of vote

Voter turnout: 54.9 per cent

2009

Percentage of the vote: 79,9

Closest opponent: Jeff Fillion, 8.5 per cent of vote

Voter turnout: 49.3 per cent

2007 (by-election)

Percentage of the vote: 59

Closestopponent:Ann Bourget

Voter turnout: 46 per cent