Provincial Politics
He was one of the founding members of the Parti Québécois in 1968. He ran for the National Assembly of Quebec in 1973 in the constituency of Charlevoix, but lost. He was elected in the constituency of Lévis in 1976 and was re-elected in 1981, 1985, 1989 et 1994.
Under René Lévesque, he was Agriculture Minister. His most notable accomplishment as Cabinet Member is the passage of a law on agricultural zoning in 1978.
After Lévesque resigned as party leader in 1985, Garon ran for the Parti Québécois leadership in 1985 but finished third with 16% of the vote, defeated by Pierre-Marc Johnson (59%).
As a Member of the Official Opposition, Garon vice-chaired, then chaired a number of parliamentary committees, including the one on Economy and Labor.
The Parti Québécois won the 1994 election and Premier Jacques Parizeau appointed Garon as Education Minister.
The resignation of Parizeau as Premier corresponds to a decline of Garon's influence in provincial politics. Garon, who belonged to the more radical wing of the PQ, was considered a close ally of Parizeau.
Premier Lucien Bouchard, who succeeded Parizeau and is widely viewed as a moderate concerning constitutional issues, did not appoint Garon to his Cabinet.
Nonetheless, Garon chaired the Parliamentary Committee on Culture.
Read more about this topic: Jean Garon
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