Charest, Jean << shah RAY, zhahn >> (1958-…), was premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012. Charest had led the provincial Quebec Liberal Party since 1998. He served as head of the federal Progressive Conservative (PC) Party from 1993 to 1998. Charest has opposed independence for the province of Quebec.
Charest was born on June 24, 1958, in Sherbrooke, Quebec. He received a law degree from the University of Sherbrooke in 1980. In 1984, he was elected as a Progressive Conservative member of Parliament in Canada’s House of Commons, where he served until 1998. In 1990, Charest headed a committee to resolve disagreements over proposed changes in Canada’s constitution. From 1991 to 1993, he served as minister of the environment under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney.
In February 1993, Mulroney announced his resignation as prime minister and PC leader. In June, Charest ran in the party election to replace Mulroney, but he narrowly lost to Kim Campbell. Charest then served as deputy prime minister in Campbell’s government. In October 1993, the PC Party, under Campbell, suffered a stunning defeat in a general election. The party had been the majority party in the Commons since 1984. Two months after the election, Charest became PC Party leader. He headed the party from 1993 to 1998.
In 1998, Charest became the head of the provincial Quebec Liberal Party, and a member of the Quebec legislature. That year, the Parti Quebecois (PQ) defeated the Liberal Party in provincial elections. In elections in 2003, the Liberal Party defeated the PQ, and Charest became premier of Quebec. Charest remained premier following Liberal election victories in 2007 and 2008. The PQ defeated the Liberal Party in 2012, and Charest lost his seat in the legislature. Charest stepped down as Liberal Party leader. In 2013, he joined a private law firm in Montreal.
In 2022, Charest ran unsuccessfully to become the leader of the federal Conservative Party of Canada. He lost the election to Pierre Poilievre, a Conservative member of Parliament in Canada’s House of Commons.
