 He worked as an accountant in private life, and first ran for the House of Commons of Canada in a 1978 by-election, in the Toronto riding of Broadview.He won the Liberal nomination with 57% over former candidate Lou Yankou, following an acrimonious nomination meeting that divided the local party organization.Valeris, who was forty-one years old at the time, argued that the country's financial situation was better than it appeared from media reports.