Orléans MP Marie-France Lalonde celebrated Internatonal Women's Day early this year by recognizing 43 women from across the riding at the Leading Women, Leading Girls award ceremony Friday morning at OCCO Kitchen.

The recipients were honoured for a variety of reasons from volunteering and mentoring to achievements in the local business community.

Orleans MPP-elect Stephen Blais left) raises his arms in triumph with Liberal imterim leader John Fraser, Ottawa-Vanier MPP-elect Lucille Collard and Glengarry- Prescott-Russell MPP Amanda Simard. FRED SHERWIN PHOTO

Among the Leading Girls was Grade 12 Gisèle-Lalonde student Yasmine Zani who .

In the end, Blais received 14,303 votes compared to 5,945 votes for Montgomery and 3,888 votes for Parrot. Green Party candidate Andrew West finished a distant third with 1,527 votes.

One of the first people to congratulate Blais at a joint victory party for the city councillor and fellow Liberal Lucille Collard, who won the by-election in Ottawa-Vanier, was Orléans MP Marie-France Lalonde, the woman whose shoes he will be filling when he's eventually sworn-in as the new MPP.

While he's waitng to be sworn in, Blais will have a lot on his plate. He has to officially step down from city council. (The Cumberland Ward office will remain open until a by-election is held, likely within the next 45-60 days.) He has to find an apartment and hire staff in Toronto. He has to move into his constituency on Centrum Blvd. And he has to do it all in the heat of the Liberal leadership race.

Orleans MPP-elect Stephen Blais takes a moment for a family portrait with his mother Deborah, wife Marta, father Stephen Sr. and son Stephen Jr.. FRED SHERWIN PHOTO

On Thursday night Blais was content to bask in his victory surrounded by fellow Liberals, friends and family.

"This is amazing. It's been a long six or seven month process... a winter campaign, which is always very tough... but the residents of Orléans have spoken very clearly tonight that the politics of negativity and the politics of divisiveness promoted by Doug Ford are not the politics they are looking for," said Blais. "They're looking for someone who will fight for their community and to get investments for the things that matter most for their families – things like health care, education and senior care."

Blais began his political career in 2006 when he successfully ran for a seat on the Ottawa Catholic School Board, defeating incumbent Des Curley in the process.

He then pulled off a huge upset by becoming one a select few number of people who have won a seat on Ottawa city council by beating an incumbent. Blais beat former Cumberland Ward councillor Rob Jellet in 2010. He was re-elected in 2014 and again in 2018.

During his first term in office Blais suffered a heart attack at the Goodlife Fitness Centre at Place d’Orléans. If not for the quick-thinking staff who applied CPR to him until the paramedics arrived, Blais very likely would have died.

After being rushed to hospital he underwent emergency surgery and was kept in a medically induced coma for several weeks. It wasn't until the end of March 2013, that he was allowed to go home to his wife Marta and their three-year-old son who is also named Stephen. The near death experience seems like eons ago now as Blais looks forward to the next phase of his political career.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)