Valerie Plante wins tight mayoral race, beating Denis Coderre

Montreal mayor Valerie Plante has done it again.

The politician who swept into power in 2017 – surprising many — including then-mayor Denis Coderre — has managed to secure another term.

Plante was the first woman ever elected as mayor of Montreal.

She is the 45th mayor – first elected to city council in 2013.

Plante has served as leader of projet montréal since 2016.

Plante campaigned on promises to continue promoting the city’s environmental transition, better public transit, and more accessible social housing.

WATCH: Valerie Plante delivers her winning speech following the 2021 Montreal municipal election

“During this campaign, I had the opportunity to meet Montrealers from all across the island, in every borough. No matter where I was the message was the same, we spoke about the issues which are important to all of us; housing, transportation, the environment, our security, but also our quality of life,” said Plante in her victory speech.

“Montreal is a city of many diverse communities, we’re proud of that. Groups who have their long-lasting… traditions. I’m proud to say… I will continue to be the mayor, and we will continue to be the team of all Montrealers.

“You have given us the privilege and honour to be your administration once again and we take this responsibility very seriously. You can count on us to be there and to listen and to represent all of you. That’s my message to you all tonight.”

Hoping to make the city more affordable to middle-income families, she also promised to offer a tax break to homeowners whose property’s municipal evaluation is under 500,000 thousand dollars.

And said her administration would add more officers to the Montreal police force and continue fighting increased gun violence.

The 47-year-old politician is often accused of being anti-car and favouring bike lanes a little too much, but she insists the goal is to make the city more family-friendly and safer.

Even though her main opponent — former mayor Denis Coderre – held a double-digit lead at the beginning of the campaign, Plante kept chipping away at his popularity.

By the end of the campaign, the closely contested race was in a dead heat.

Plante’s greener, more socially inclusive city may appeal to younger, more active, urban voters.

But the same priorities have also hurt her with older and more suburban voters who often blame her for the city’s never-ending traffic woes.

But the criticism didn’t appear to be enough to deter Montreal voters, who gave her another mandate tonight.

The energetic mayor with the trademark laughter will now get the opportunity to finish many of the long-term projects she started when first elected.

And continue to lead Montreal through a global pandemic that at one point was the country’s covid epicentre.