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From left, Québec Solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal, Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette, Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime and Quebec Liberal Leader Charles Milliard in Montreal, Sept. 23.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Voters in Quebec’s 127 ridings are heading to the polls today to choose a new provincial government.
After two straight Coalition Avenir Québec majority governments, the Parti Québécois appears to be in the driver’s seat as the 40-day election campaign comes to a close.
“I hope that tomorrow there will be a significant change in direction, and I think that’s what the people of Quebec are expecting,” PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said Sunday. “I believe we are the only ones who can offer that.”
St-Pierre Plamondon spent his last day of campaigning in the Montreal region, where the party is hoping to flip seats after a decade of weak PQ support. The PQ Leader has pledged to launch a referendum on sovereignty if his party forms a government, but not before U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the White House in 2029.
The PQ Leader’s rivals, meanwhile, were warning voters against choosing a party that has promised to hold a sovereignty referendum before the end of its first term in government.
What to know about the major parties, their platforms and where to vote
There are 127 seats in the Quebec National Assembly, two of which are new seats. Securing a majority government requires winning 64 seats.
When the election was called, the CAQ held 79 seats, the Liberals had 18, Québec solidaire 11 and the PQ held seven seats. There were nine Independents and one Conservative.
St-Pierre Plamondon is facing off against a large field that includes CAQ Leader Christine Fréchette and Liberal Leader Charles Milliard, as well as Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal and Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime.
Fréchette said her party is the only one that offers an alternative to the province’s sovereigntist-federalist dichotomy, by focusing on nationalism and economic growth within Canada.
She said she was proud of her campaign, but also expressed regret over not having put more emphasis on the threat posed by a referendum.
‘It’s important for people to realize this, because it’s not just a decision that could affect Quebec in three years,’” she said. “There will be impacts because uncertainty will become part of Quebec’s political and economic calendar.”
Fréchette, whose party has been trailing in the polls, was scheduled to spend part of the last full day of campaigning door-knocking in the riding of Trois-Rivières, where she’s running for a seat.
Liberal Leader Charles Milliard described his party as the only federalist option. He urged voters who want to avoid a PQ government to vote strategically for his candidates.
He warned that a PQ minority would be seeking support for a referendum among the other parties.
“One party that Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon won’t be calling up is the Liberal Party of Quebec, because we’re proudly federalist and not ashamed to say it,” he said.
During a campaign stop Sunday in St-Victor, Que., Milliard said his party had gained momentum since the start of the campaign, when he was criticized for not having a picture of himself on his party’s campaign bus – an image that was added later. He said the Liberal vote was likely underestimated in certain regions.
Liberals look to turn the tide in Quebec amid a sea of blue
Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime, meanwhile, urged his supporters to cast enough votes on Monday to give his party a strong voice in the legislature. Duhaime has promised to use his leverage to act as a “guard dog” who will protect taxpayer interests and attempt to block a referendum vote.
The Quebec Conservatives haven’t won a seat under Duhaime’s leadership, but they are expected to make a breakthrough that could give them the balance of power if no party wins a majority in the legislature. Duhaime said he’s hoping his party wins at least 12 seats and official party status.
“I’m very, very serene, and I have confidence,” he said. “The only thing is, we have to make sure people go out and vote.”
In Montreal, Québec solidaire spokesperson Ruba Ghazal was making a final appeal to progressive sovereigntist voters who don’t identify with the “austerity” proposed by the PQ, and other parties, including Duhaime’s Conservatives.
“Send a signal that not all of Quebec has swung to the right or turned conservative, and also send people who will be the only ones to stand up to Éric Duhaime’s influence in the next parliament,” she said.
Élections Québec says nearly a quarter of voters had already cast their ballots in advance. Polls close across the province at 8 p.m.