By Greg Murphy
Martin Cauchon is the ninth candidate to run for the leadership of the Liberal party, the third to run from Quebec, and is considered the last-minute entry which critics say will prove to be problematic for him.
Cauchon is 50 years old and aside from being an active politician, is a well-seasoned lawyer practising for the Montreal firm of Heenan Blaikie. Cauchon has a Master of law in international business legal studies from the University of Exeter in the UK. At Heenan Blaikie, Cauchon advises clients on the Plan Nord development initiative in Quebec and is a strategist for the firm on relations with China.
His political career started in 1988 when he ran unsuccessfully in the Charlevoix riding in Quebec. In 1993, Cauchon ran successfully for the Quebec riding of Outremont and was re-elected twice, in 1997 and 2000.
Cauchon is thought by many political friends and rivals as the spearhead of the Jean Chretien loyalists. Under Chretien, he was the junior cabinet minister of the Quebec regional development agency in 1996. Cauchon became Revenue Minister in 1999 and Justice Minister in 2002.
In 2011, he lost to the NDP’s Thomas Mulcair in the federal election.
As justice minister, Cauchon was a driving force in the conversations of decriminalizing the recreational use of marijuana and the legalization of same-sex marriage. Cauchon is regarded as one of the more progressive Liberals.
He also strongly believes in upholding traditional Liberal principles. Cauchon displayed this when he attacked Justin Trudeau for calling the long-gun registry, a Chretien initiative, a failure. He has also called for the other Liberal candidates to have a “backbone” for other traditional Liberal principles.