{{Short description|Canadian politician (born 1949)}} {{Use Canadian English|date=September 2022}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Robert Toupin | honorific_suffix = [[Member of Parliament (Canada)|MP]] | image = | riding = [[Terrebonne (federal electoral district)|Terrebonne]] | parliament = Canadian | term_start = 1984 | term_end = 1988 | predecessor = [[Joseph-Roland Comtois]] | successor = [[Jean-Marc Robitaille]] | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1949|1|20}} | birth_place = [[L'Assomption, Quebec|L'Assomption]], [[Quebec]], Canada | death_date = | death_place = | party = [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservative]] <small>(1984-1986)</small><br />[[Independent (politician)|Independent]] <small>(1986, 1987-1988)</small><br />[[New Democratic Party|New Democratic]] <small>(1986-1987)</small> | spouse = | profession = | footnotes = }}
'''Robert Toupin''' (born January 20, 1949) is a former Canadian politician who served as the [[Member of Parliament (Canada)|member of Parliament]] (MP) in the [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]] for the [[Electoral district (Canada)|riding]] of [[Terrebonne (federal electoral district)|Terrebonne]] from 1984 to 1988.
Toupin had been a worker for the [[Quebec Liberal Party]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news2/background/cdngovernment/crossing.html |title=CBC News In Depth: Canadian government |publisher=Cbc.ca |date=2007-06-27 |accessdate=2018-03-13}}</ref> when he joined the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada]] following [[Brian Mulroney]]'s election as party leader. Toupin was a successful Tory candidate in [[Terrebonne (federal electoral district)|Terrebonne]] riding in the [[1984 Canadian federal election|1984 federal election]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=December 17, 1986 |title=Will Toupin be a team player for NDP? |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gazette-will-toupin-be-a-team-player/143455609/ |work=[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]] |agency=[[The Canadian Press]] |location=Ottawa, Ontario |page=B1 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
Critical of the new government's policies, he [[crossing the floor|crossed the floor]] in May 1986 to sit as an [[Independent (politician)|independent]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |title=Quebec MP quits Conservatives to sit as independent |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gazette-quebec-mp-quits-conservative/143455890/}} and {{cite news |date=May 15, 1986 |title=Quebec Conservative MP quits to sit as independent |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gazette-quebec-conservative-mp-quits/143455986/ |work=[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]] |location=Ottawa, Ontario |pages=A1-A2 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He attempted to join the [[Liberal Party of Canada]] but the Liberal [[riding association]] for the constituency he represented rejected him.<ref>{{cite news |last=McGillivray |first=Don |date=December 18, 1986 |title=Cheap and easy Quebec seat may hurt the NDP |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-hamilton-spectator-cheap-and-easy-qu/143456279/ |work=[[The Hamilton Spectator]] |agency=[[Postmedia Network|Southam News]] |location=Ottawa, Ontario |page=A6 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He ultimately joined the [[New Democratic Party]] (NDP), becoming the first NDP MP from a Quebec riding.<ref>{{cite news |last=Block |first=Irwin |date=December 17, 1986 |title=Toupin faces fight to hold seat |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gazette-toupin-faces-fight-to-hold-s/143456449/ |work=[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]] |location=Repentigny, Quebec |page=B1 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> However, in October 1987, he left the party after ten months to again sit as an independent, after claiming that the party was dominated by the extreme left.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=October 27, 1987 |title=Quebec MP quits NDP, citing extremism faction |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/star-phoenix-quebec-mp-quits-ndp-citing/143456777/ |work=[[The Star-Phoenix]] |agency=[[The Canadian Press]] |location=Ottawa, Ontario |page=A12 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Conway |first=J.F. |date=November 12, 1987 |title=Toupin was bad political retreat for Broadbent |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/waterloo-region-record-toupin-was-bad-po/143456937/ |work=[[Waterloo Region Record]] |location=Waterloo, Ontario |page=A7 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
Toupin was defeated as an independent candidate in the [[1988 Canadian federal election|1988 federal election]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=November 22, 1988 |title=St. Germain, five other ministers defeated |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-vancouver-sun-st-germain-five-othe/143457187/ |work=[[Vancouver Sun]] |location=Ottawa, Ontario |page=A2 |access-date=March 15, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
==Electoral record== {{1988 Canadian federal election/Terrebonne}} {{1984 Canadian federal election/Terrebonne}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{Canadian Parliament links|ID=13417}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toupin, Robert}} [[Category:1949 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada]] [[Category:Independent MPs in the Canadian House of Commons]] [[Category:Lawyers in Quebec]] [[Category:Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec]] [[Category:New Democratic Party MPs]] [[Category:Politicians from Lanaudière]] [[Category:Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs]]
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