François Gérin

François Gérin, a Progressive Conservative MP for Mégantic—Compton—Stanstead, was among the first Quebec MPs to break with Brian Mulroney over the failure of the Meech Lake Accord. In May 1990, Gérin left the Conservative caucus and sat as an Independent, citing the federal government's inability to meet Quebec's constitutional demands as outlined in the Accord. He was deeply influenced by Lucien Bouchard's dramatic resignation from cabinet on May 22, 1990, and joined the growing sovereigntist movement within Quebec's federal delegation. By September 1990, Gérin had become one of the founding members of the Bloc Québécois parliamentary caucus.

Gérin was re-elected as a Bloc Québécois MP in the 1993 election that saw the BQ become the Official Opposition with 54 seats — an extraordinary achievement for a party that didn't exist three years earlier. He served until 1997. Gérin's crossing was part of the massive exodus of Quebec MPs from the Conservative caucus that destroyed Mulroney's coalition and contributed to the Conservative collapse in 1993, when the party was reduced from 156 seats to just 2.