Fernand Robichaud (born December 2, 1939) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician. He was born in

Shippagan Shippagan is a Canadian town within Shippegan Parish, Gloucester County, New Brunswick. The parish retains the original English spelling, while the town officially adopted the colloquial French spelling on 1 July 1981. Shippagan was great ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic Canad ...

and received a teaching certificate from the Moncton Technical Institute. Before entering politics, Robichaud was a teacher and businessman. He served on the municipal council for

Saint-Louis-de-Kent Saint-Louis-de-Kent is a Canadian village in Kent County, New Brunswick. Often shortened to simply Saint-Louis, the village is situated on the Kouchibouguacis River at the main entrance to Kouchibouguac National Park. It is considered as th ...

from 1971 to 1974. Robichaud was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 1984 election representing the riding of Westmorland—Kent, New Brunswick. In the 1988 election, he was re-elected representing Beauséjour. In 1990, he resigned his seat in order to allow newly elected

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

leader Jean Chrétien to enter the House of Commons through a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election use ...

. Robichaud served as Special Assistant to the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

until returning to the House in the 1993 election. With the election of Chrétien as

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

, Robichaud became Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs. In 1994, he was appointed Secretary of State for Agriculture and Agri-Food, Fisheries, and Oceans. Robichaud did not run in the 1997 election and was appointed on Chrétien's recommendation to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the ...

on September 23, 1997. From 2001 to 2004, he was deputy government leader in the Senate. He later served as vice-chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry. On January 29, 2014, Liberal Party leader

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since ...

announced all Liberal Senators, including Robichaud, were removed from the Liberal caucus, and would continue sitting as Independents. The Senators referred to themselves as the

Senate Liberal Caucus The Senate Liberal Caucus (french: Caucus libéral du Sénat), also known as the Senate Liberals (french: libéraux au Sénat), was, from 2014 to 2019, a parliamentary grouping in the Senate of Canada made up of independent senators who were indi ...

even though they were no longer members of the parliamentary Liberal caucus. He retired from the Senate on December 2, 2014 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robichaud, Fernand 1939 births Living people Liberal Party of Canada senators Canadian senators from New Brunswick Members of the 26th Canadian Ministry Members of the House of Commons of Canada from New Brunswick Liberal Party of Canada MPs Acadian people Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada New Brunswick municipal councillors