René Cormier

René Cormier (born April 27, 1956) is a Canadian Acadian artist and activist from New Brunswick. He has been a senator from New Brunswick since 2016.

Early life and education Raised in Caraquet, New Brunswick, he studied music at the Université de Montréal. Following university, Cormier was a musical and theatre director.

Political career On October 27, 2016, Cormier was named to the Senate of Canada by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to sit as an independent. Cormier assumed his seat on November 10, 2016.

A Francophone, he is president of the Société Nationale de l'Acadie (SNA), the primary organization championing Acadian artists. Following his appointment to the Senate, Cormier stated that he plans to continue with his work with the SNA, while avoiding any conflicts of interest. and spearheaded the creation of the Canadian Pride Caucus, a non-partisan committee of Canada's LGBTQ MPs and senators.