Former Mayor Denis Coderre significantly outspent Valérie Plante, who went on to defeat him, in Montreal's 2017 municipal election.
Équipe Denis Coderre, now known as Ensemble Montreal, spent nearly $1.5 million during last year's campaign, coming very close to the legal limit. The bulk of the party's spending -- close to $1 million -- was on advertising.
Coderre's advertising budget was nearly equal to what Projet Montreal spent on their entire campaign. Newly-submitted campaign expense documents indicate that the new Mayor's political party spent a little over $1 million last year. A little under $40,000 of that money was paid to Upperkut, the firm behind that much-discussed "Homme de la Situation" ad campaign in the late summer to raise Plante's name-recognition.
The aborted third-party Mayoral campaign of Coalition Montreal's Jean Fortier spent far less than the two main candidates: the report says they spent $77,000. Midway through the campaign, Fortier suspended his campaign and endorsed Plante.
More information on campaign finances, including how much each party received in donations, will be made available in the early spring.