Charbonneau first entered politics in 1976 when he was elected in Vercheres and the Parti Québécois, led by René Lévesque defeated Robert Bourassa's Liberals during that election.
Charbonneau first stepped into politics in 1976 when he won a seat in Vercheres and the Parti Québécois, under René Lévesque's leadership, outdid Robert Bourassa's Liberals in that year's election.