Frank Venneri

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Frank Venneri is a long-time Montreal politician. He first won a seat on the Montreal city council in 1986, representing the east-end François-Perrault ward (which was known as Jean‑Rivard from 2001 to 2009). He left council in 1990, was re-elected in 1998, and has been returned to the council in every election since then. Venneri sits as an independent councillor since 2012.

Over the years he has been part of several parties: Montreal Citizens' Movement (1986–1989), Montreal Municipal Party (1989–1992), Civic Party of Montreal (1992–1994), Montrealers' Party (1994–1995), Vision Montreal (1998–2003), Montreal Island Citizens Union/Union Montreal (2003–2012). In 2004 he became vice-chair of Montreal’s finance committee and also served on the committee on services to residents. He remains on the Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension borough council by virtue of his city seat.

Before politics, Venneri ran a hair salon for more than twenty years and was president of the Saint-Michel Optimist Club. He opposed a 1995 by-law that would have let hair salons operate in private homes. He briefly left the council in the 1990s and, in 1988, ran for federal office as a Progressive Conservative in Papineau–Saint-Michel, finishing second to Liberal incumbent André Ouellet; he had to sit as an independent due to his party switch.

In 2012 he left Union Montreal after mayor Tremblay resigned amid a major corruption scandal.