By-election in Marie-Victorin | Storming a castle

Marie-Victorin. One of the last strongholds of the Parti Québécois, elected since 1985. With the departure of Catherine Fournier as mayor of Longueuil, a by-election will be called imminently. A moment of truth for the PQ troops, who are fighting a decisive fight for their revival against the other parties, in search of a breakthrough, and the Coalition avenir Québec, ready to do anything to delight the riding.

Hugo Pilon Larose
The Press

Pierre Nantel walks through the doors of Place Longueuil at noon. While outside, a heavy rain pours on winter a prelude to spring, it’s the perfect time to meet voters at the food court. Between a poutine or a quarter-thigh, he invites himself to the tables to deliver a message: the Parti Québécois has not disappeared, “and it is out of the question for that to happen here”.

The PQ candidate in the by-election – which has still not been called – is accompanied by former parliamentary leader Pascal Bérubé. “I think we have to judge the Parti Québécois on what we are saying now, not on the years we were in government, nor by wondering what it will be like in the next election,” he says. -he.

Attentive to the conversations around him, Pierre Nantel is looking for a signal to greet a passer-by.

“Pierre wants above all to be a good deputy. And a good MP, you don’t have to be on the side of power. You are on the side of the will, ”says MP Pascal Bérubé.

This message is crucial for the PQ, as the most recent Léger poll published in The Journal of Quebec estimates that the party is neck and neck with the CAQ with 33% support in the riding of Marie-Victorin. At the provincial level, this same firm places the troops of Paul St-Pierre Plamondon in the last rank of voting intentions.

For the PQ, winning the partial would make it possible to forget the statements of the new mayor of Longueuil, Catherine Fournier. In 2019, when she slammed the door of the party to sit as an independent MP, she hammered “that there is no point in desperately wanting to save the trunk or the branches of a withering tree”.

In the field, rain or shine

The streets of Longueuil are not (yet) lined with election signs. This is the only sign that reminds us that François Legault has still not announced the date of the by-election. Last Monday, the Prime Minister also toured Place Longueuil with his candidate, Shirley Dorismond. He had previously promised at a press conference a “very nice” extension of the Metropolitan Express Network (REM) on the South Shore.

Armed with boots, raincoats and umbrellas, the CAQ candidate and her volunteers braved the weather for a few hours door-to-door. Minister Ian Lafrenière, who accompanies her, presents her as a nurse who listens to citizens. In a well-orchestrated sequence, Shirley Dorismond specifies that she is the candidate of “Mr. Legault’s team”.

Citizens are attentive to his message. A man, whose wife with a loss of autonomy was recently placed in an institution, talks about home support. At another address, where the comforting smells of soup emanate, a lady talks about her plan to expand her home daycare. “Another election? Again ! “, a few houses further on surprised a citizen, somewhat tired of these successive polls.

What may seem less natural, however, for this former vice-president of a nurses’ union, is her association with the Coalition avenir Québec. As soon as his candidacy was announced, his past statements on certain hated party themes, such as his recognition of systemic racism, resurfaced.

“We often forget, but the CAQ is a coalition with people from different backgrounds, who bring different opinions on different subjects, with different expertise,” she replies.

Fight distress

In their meetings on the ground, the candidates for the by-election are in turn confronted with the anger of the citizens. The director of an organization in Vieux-Longueuil, which offers respite and support services for people with disabilities, testifies to the distress of certain workers. She herself no longer knows how to balance her budgets.

“I’m exhausted. I’m exhausted and I’m on the verge of breaking down. We all want to leave, we are ready to go wash the dishes,” she said.

With the public health and social services sector, which is also looking for employees, community organizations are struggling to mobilize their people. “They siphoned off the workforce. I am understaffed and I live on an artificial respirator, ”deplores the director to Pierre Nantel, who promises to send his message to high places.

For the PQ and the CAQ, the by-election in the riding of Marie-Victorin is a decisive battle. One wants to take it to remind him that he is still alive, and the other, to prove that she can still bring down castles.

“If the Parti Québécois wins the by-election, that’s excellent news for the future. It means that there is something that appeals to voters. […] For the CAQ, it is more difficult. Voters often want to send a message [dans une partielle] to tell the government that it could have done better. If the party wins, that puts them in a good position for the next general election,” says Geneviève Tellier, professor at the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa.

But these two parties are not the only ones on the starting line (see tab 2). At the time of making this report, the leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ), Éric Duhaime, was in turn going door to door with his candidate, actress Anne Casabonne. A recent Léger poll even placed his party, fiercely opposed to health measures, in second place in terms of voting intentions among Francophone voters at the provincial level.

“You always have to be very careful when interpreting polls, but I’m happy. My experience teaches me that the number which is relevant is the satisfaction with the government which is falling. It’s getting major,” he says, promising that nothing in this election can be taken for granted.

The other candidates on the starting line

Shophika Vaithyanathasarma

22 years old
Candidate of Quebec solidaire

Former Bloc Québécois candidate in the fall 2021 federal election, currently pursuing graduate studies in mathematics education

“I embody an independentist youth who has everything it takes to make a real change in the constituency. As young people, we have a role to play. With this race, I want to bring people together and make sure no one is left behind. I sense a lack of interest from the population and a lack of confidence in the institutions. I want to fight against this cynicism by being human and authentic. »

Anne Casabonne

52 years
Candidate of the Conservative Party of Quebec
Actress

“I want to promote our political program, which is a very good program. We want to abolish health measures as quickly as possible, but we also want to rebuild the health system. It’s really a total reconstruction of the health system [qu’il faut faire], don’t be embarrassed. We have to stop thinking that our system is the best in the world, when it has shown us all its flaws. »

Emilie Nollet

35 years
Candidate of the Quebec Liberal Party
Researcher at Saint Paul University on inclusive leadership

“The way I stand out as a candidate is that I have a hands-on approach. My hobbyhorse is food security, but also diversity and inclusion. These are subjects that are dear to me. I want to meet people in person, because it’s not just about political parties. When people meet me, they realize I’m a listening candidate. »

Martine Ouellet

52 years
Candidate and head of Climat Québec
Former minister of the PQ government of Pauline Marois and former leader of the Bloc Québécois

“There is clearly a political vacuum in Quebec with 35% of voters who did not vote in 2018. Here, in Marie-Victorin, the situation has changed a lot in recent years. The certainties of yesteryear no longer hold. We are counting on concrete measures such as free public transport and the strengthening of the green belt, which will have significant beneficial effects for both the environment and the community. Citizens have had enough of jargon and false promises. »