François Legault underestimated the number of “intellectuals” in Quebec. Whether the Prime Minister likes it or not, a majority of citizens are in favor of reforming the voting system.
• Read also – Mixed proportional voting: here is what the portrait would be like in the National Assembly
No less than 53% of Quebecers want the current electoral system to be reviewed, reveals a Léger-The newspapercarried out a few days after the election.
The result of the October 3 election shed light on a major distortion between the popular vote and the number of seats won by political parties.
Supported by 41% of voters, the CAQ elected no less than 90 deputies out of 125, or 72% of the seats. Conversely, with 14.6% of the vote, the Parti Québécois will only have three representatives in the National Assembly.
Enjoying similar popular support (14.4%), the Liberals won 21 seats. And the Conservatives have no elected, even with 13% of voters.
A mixed proportional vote would have significantly changed the rainbow of colors and the distribution of benches in Parliament, while the opposition parties would have been better represented.
- Listen to the Yasmine Abdelfadel and Marc-André Leclerc meeting broadcast live every day at 6 a.m. via QUB-radio :
The double-locked door
Formerly in favor of a reform of the voting system, François Legault has since closed the door twice to any change in the electoral system, claiming that it is not a priority for Quebecers.
Moreover, he affirmed during the election campaign that a reform of the voting system “does not interest the population, apart from a few intellectuals”.
But the Prime Minister has it all wrong on this issue, according to pollster Jean-Marc Léger.
“The finding of the survey is that there are many intellectuals in Quebec,” he laughs.
“The majority of Quebecers want a reform of the voting system, he analyzes. People believe that François Legault is on the wrong track.
Caquists also in favor
Unsurprisingly, the appetite for such change is stronger among younger voters than among older age groups.
Similarly, supporters of opposition parties are overwhelmingly in favor of changing the voting system.
This is the case for nearly four out of five Conservatives. Solidarity and the PQ are almost as numerous to demand a reform.
But beware, this idea also appeals to a portion of supporters of François Legault. No less than 30% of CAQ voters are in favor of it, even if 52% are opposed to this change.
- Listen to the interview with Christian Bourque on the show of Philippe-Vincent Foisy broadcast live daily at 7:45 a.m. via QUB-radio :
Partisan view
According to the pollster, the Prime Minister’s position is a political calculation.
“It’s a very partisan vision of the thing, it’s not a Prime Minister’s vision,” underlines Jean-Marc Léger.
In 2018, the head of the CAQ had nevertheless committed to reforming the voting system in order to reduce the distortion if he took power.
Once in business, the Legault government tabled a bill to achieve this, which it however dropped in 2021.
Minister Sonia LeBel, responsible for democratic reform, then said she supported her decision on the pandemic, “which turned everything upside down”.
REFORM OF THE VOTING METHOD
Do you want a reform or not of the current voting system?
53% Yes, I want a reform
27% No, I don’t want reform
20% Don’t know / Refused
CAQ 30 %
QS 75%
QP 73%
QLP 60%
PCQ 79%
CAQ 52%
QS 17%
QP 13%
QLP 19%
PCQ 12%
CAQ 17%
QS 8%
QP 13%
QLP 22%
PCQ 9%
METHODOLOGY
The web survey was conducted among 1,040 Quebecers aged 18 or over, from October 7 to 10, 2022. It is not possible to calculate a margin of error on a sample drawn from a panel, but for comparison purposes , the maximum margin of error for a sample of 1040 respondents is plus or minus 3%, 19 times out of 20. The results were weighted according to gender, age, mother tongue, the region, the level of education and the presence of children in the household in order to ensure a representative sample of the Quebec population.
Would you like to take surveys too? Sign up for LEO, Leger’s panel: https://bit.ly/3raMw62