Will 'Futur Montréal' be on the ballot in municipal elections this November?

Author: The Laval News
Published June 15, 2025, Martin C. Barry, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Is it a social movement with political aspirations and overtones? Or a full-fledged party in waiting?
Those are questions the organizers of a one-day roundtable seminar held in Côte des Neiges last weekend hope to have an answer to when they find out whether their application for official recognition as a political party has been accepted by the Quebec election registrar's office.
The gathering, Citizen Power in Action, was sponsored by Futur Montréal, whose co-founder is Joël DeBellefeuille.
Was racially profiled
DeBellefeuille, a black Canadian, was involved in a controversial legal battle that began in 2009 when his car was pulled over (for the fourth time within days) by the Longueuil Police who singled him out because they found his name didn't seem to match his racial profile.
After DeBellefeuille was fined in court when found guilty of not cooperating with the officers, he filed a complaint with the Quebec Human Rights Commission. Three years later, the conviction was dismissed and the officers were reprimanded.
DeBellefeuille is also the founder of the Red Coalition, a Montreal-based lobby group that seeks to eliminate racial profiling and systemic racism. “We're here today because we consider civic engagement to be very important,” he said in an interview with Nouvelles Parc Extension News regarding last Saturday's event.
A party or a movement?
Although he referred to Futur Montréal as a political movement, DeBellefeuille said they had an application in for political party status and expected to have an answer within two weeks at most.
A panel of presenters who spoke from morning to early afternoon included former Ahuntsic Liberal Member of Parliament Eleni Bakopanos, Montreal constitutional lawyer Julius Grey, former Quebec Liberal MNA David Heurtel and Montreal criminal defense lawyer Ralph Mastromonaco.
They shared their views and expertise on citizen engagement, each according to their area of ​​action. A moderated question period followed the presentations to allow thoughtful exchanges between the presenters and the audience.
Another party welcome
Bakopanos said she was mostly unaware of the forum organizers' efforts to form a political party. “If that's where it's going to go, it's up to Joël and the people around him who want to create another political party, although I think there is room in Montreal for another political party,” she told NPEN.
She said she was asked to speak about the involvement of women in politics. “From the time that I worked for the Quebec Liberal Party or as a Member of Parliament, I always believed in encouraging more women, especially those who are members of the ethnic communities, to participate,” she said.
Bakopanos mentored a number of women who entered politics, including former Liberal Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, who was a potential candidate for the Liberal leadership after the departure of Justin Trudeau.
Lawyer criticizes system
In line with the values ​​promoted by the Red Coalition, Ralph Mastromonaco's presentation focused on his efforts to defend many clients who found themselves in trouble with the law with racial profiling as a significant factor.
Among other things, he was critical of the notorious slowness of Quebec's court and legal system, saying it is still operating largely on paper-based documentation, rather than adapting to a more practical and modern digital system.
He was also critical of the overall actions of the police, saying they lacked the basic training to recognize the cultural differences of minorities.
“I don't think police are taught enough about de-escalating and walking away from conflict, because they feel if they walk away from conflict, they're giving up their power,” he said.