[2] The party's first francophone leader, he was noted for making inroads into the province's Acadian community, taking the party to a then-record level of support in the 1978 provincial election.
[3] He was also an early advocate of environmentalism in the province, building his campaign on opposition to aerial spraying and to the proposed Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station.
[3] He resigned as leader in July 1980, following a dispute with the party's executive committee, complaining that the NDP had drifted from its socialist principles.
[4][5] A teacher by profession,[3] he taught at the Bonar Law High School in Rexton, New Brunswick, and was married to Ferne (Fearon) LaBossiere, a native of Tide Head, New Brunswick.
[citation needed] He ran for the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick in the 1978 and 1995 elections.