“We have been aware from the start that it is far from a foregone conclusion: nothing is certain, nothing is won,” said Québec solidaire (QS) co-spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau- Dubois during his party’s campaign report, in Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne.
Held in the offices of candidate Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, the press conference brought together the majority of Montreal MPs from QS, as well as several dozen volunteers. They were preparing to carry out a door-to-door operation all afternoon in the constituency.
“We know that we are campaigning in a strong Liberal castle, there is a hill to go up,” continued Mr. Nadeau-Dubois. “A solidarity victory would allow people in the neighborhood to finally turn the page on 35 years of Liberal MPs,” he argued.
According to the most recent projections from the Qc125 electoral projection site, the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) and QS are neck and neck, each receiving 33% of the voting intentions. The PLQ is represented by Christophe Baenninger, defeated candidate in Sainte-Marie Saint-Jacques in the last elections.
The Coalition Avenir Québec, the Parti Québécois and the Conservative Party of Québec are far behind, at 16%, 10% and 4% respectively. Their candidates are Victor Pelletier, Andréanne Fiola and Lucien Koty.
Once again a local candidate for QS after his defeat in the last general election, immigration lawyer Guillaume Cliche-Rivard claims to feel “good momentum” on the ground.
He says the main issue he hears about in the field is housing. “The housing crisis is hitting Saint-Henri Sainte-Anne so hard. It is absolutely necessary to put in place clear, strong and rapid measures to allow people to get by with housing. »
The QLP mobilized
For the two leading parties in the projections, the stakes are high: a victory for QS would allow it to elect a twelfth deputy, and thus reach the threshold required to be recognized de facto as a parliamentary group. For the PLQ, a victory would prove the vitality of the party in a riding known as one of its strongholds since 1992.
For the former Liberal minister Christine St-Pierre, the pressure remains in the court of the PLQ. “The party has always had this constituency, whereas if QS loses they could always say ‘we never won this constituency, we did everything we could’. »
She still believes in a “close victory” for the Liberal Party in the election, which will take place next Monday. “I think the PLQ has a very good chance of winning; they worked very hard and showed a lot of energy on the field,” she notes.
Ms. St-Pierre does not believe in the scenario of a Liberal defeat, but still believes that it “would not be the end of the world” if it happened.
This is the final sprint for the parties, which are actively mobilizing for the last days of campaigning. On Friday, Liberal candidate Christophe Baenninger went door-to-door in the county, in addition to visiting a retirement home.
The CAQ candidate, Victor Pelletier, also carried out several electoral activities in the past week, including a door-to-door session with the Minister of Higher Education, Pascale Déry.
Thursday evening, the PQ candidate, Andréanne Fiola, met voters in the riding accompanied by the leader of the party, Paul St-Pierre-Plamondon.