In a café in Saint-Lambert, an affluent suburb of Montreal, Liberal candidate Mathieu Gratton discusses his chances of winning the election. He is in a real red fortress, which has been voting liberal for almost half a century, but admits to facing a strong headwind: “There is no longer a fortified castle, it is rather a house of cards. »
Dominique Anglade’s party is trying to save the furniture in Montérégie. The last three red ridings in the region (Laporte, La Pinière and Vaudreuil) are being heated by the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ). The party of François Legault holds 18 of the 22 ridings in this region of the outskirts of Montreal, torn off in recent years from the Parti Québécois (PQ) and the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ).
“I come with lots of good intentions, but it’s not easy. I have to work hard,” admits Mathieu Gratton over a café au lait.
This 46-year-old artist, TV host, singer, comedian – he was part of the Crampe en masse duo in the early 2000s – is a Liberal candidate 200 kilometers from home. He resides in Scotstown, in the Eastern Townships, and is trying to get elected in Laporte, which includes Saint-Lambert and the surrounding suburbs. Whether he is elected or not, Mathieu Gratton plans to move near Montreal with his spouse and their children.
He acknowledges that the game was easier not so long ago when the sovereignists supported the PQ and when the federalists voted liberal. The PLQ had to redefine itself. It positions itself as the party of the environment, the economy and, above all, of inclusion — a sensitive subject with the declarations of the outgoing Minister of Immigration, Jean Boulet, and the outgoing Prime Minister, François Legault, on the so-called negative impact of immigration. The Liberals intend to outline these controversial outings in broad strokes by Monday’s election.
Mathieu Gratton, father of a 21-year-old autistic boy, is leading a battle to improve services for people with disabilities. Before entering politics, he says he found an attentive ear with Dominique Anglade and Liberal MP Jennifer Maccarone (again candidate in Westmount–Saint-Louis), who tirelessly defends the rights autistic children.
Mathieu Gratton says he is well received by going door to door, but the game is not won for the PLQ. “There is no longer a red fortress, we feel that the liberal castles can fall,” said Isabelle Poulet, CAQ candidate in Laporte.
Its commitments relate to home support for the elderly, the fight against school dropouts and the public transport offer along Taschereau Boulevard, a real scar in the heart of the riding. Voters seem ready to listen to the CAQ’s proposals.
“I’ve always voted liberal, but this time I can’t. Poor Madame Anglade, she is not convincing,” said Louis Hogue, a retiree seated in a restaurant on Victoria Avenue in Saint-Lambert.
He plans to support the CAQ out of spite, even if he finds that the Legault government deserves to be hounded by a strong opposition. He deplores the “arrogance” of the Prime Minister, among other things because of the confusion surrounding the studies on the tunnel project between Quebec and Lévis.
Manage growth
About fifty kilometers from Saint-Lambert, in the riding of Vaudreuil, another road “link” has become an electoral issue: the Île aux Tourtes bridge, which connects Montérégie and the island of Montreal, must be replaced. Quebec has given up a lane reserved for public transport on the future bridge.
“It makes no sense that in 2022, we are removing public transport routes,” indignant Marie-Claude Nichols, outgoing MP and Liberal candidate in the riding.
The CAQ candidate in Vaudreuil, Eve Bélec, corrects the shot: she recalls that the Ministry of Transport has chosen to add a shoulder in each direction, among others for emergency vehicles. “If necessary, the shoulder can be reserved for public transport,” she adds.
One thing is certain, an expressway on this bridge is crucial for the people of Vaudreuil-Dorion: the future REM station will be on the island of Montreal, on the other side of Lac des Deux-Montagnes. And traffic jams are likely to grow due to the population explosion in the area.
Schools are overflowing. Construction of a 400-bed hospital has just begun. The region also needs a theater and sports facilities, argues the liberal Marie-Claude Nichols.
A four-storey secondary school is under construction. It will include an auditorium and sports facilities that will be offered to the entire population, argues caquiste Eve Bélec.
The CAQ candidate affirms that the people of Vaudreuil “want renewal”, after more than three decades of Liberal rule in this riding, which is one-third English-speaking.
For her part, the Liberal MP, who is seeking a third term, insists on the importance of counterbalancing François Legault: “I am well aware that the CAQ remains strong in the polls, but it takes opposition to move forward. the files. »
Diversity first
Dominique Anglade’s party is being criticized for its dithering on the subject of Bill 96 aimed at protecting French. The PLQ proposed amendments which were approved — before acknowledging that it was a mistake. The party may have voted against the bill, but confusion reigns among allophone and anglophone citizens.
“You didn’t do that well with the French language bill,” said an allophone voter from Brossard to Linda Caron, Liberal candidate in La Pinière — Gaétan Barrette’s former riding.
“We voted against Bill 96,” she explains to this voter of Asian origin, who speaks good French.
“Don’t even try to convince me, I won’t vote for you!” he replies firmly.
Linda Caron, who has chaired the PLQ since 2019, is confident of keeping the liberal fortress of La Pinière, where 43% of the population is made up of visible minorities. “We have always been the party of inclusion. We kept our values, ”says the candidate.
The duty accompanied her door-to-door in sector B of Brossard — an affluent middle-class neighborhood where people are of Chinese, Vietnamese, Moroccan, Indian, Pakistani origin… The welcome is polite in this street lined with bungalows. “People live in harmony, regardless of their origins. Newcomers work hard. They create jobs. The Prime Minister’s and Minister Boulet’s remarks on immigration are distressing. On which planet does François Legault live to associate immigration with the term “suicidal”? said Linda Caron.
In an interview over the past few days, his opponent from the CAQ, the Dr Samuel Gatien, instead insisted on the party’s plan for access to health care. “People also tell me that the Liberals did nothing for them in La Pinière,” he said. Lack of public transport on boulevard Taschereau, banks of the river in need of love, absence of noise barriers along the transport routes and, even, repeated power outages: this family doctor is committed to improving daily life citizens while continuing to care for its patients.
It remains to be seen to what extent immigration and diversity will become an electoral issue at the end of the campaign. The Liberals will try to confront the CAQ with its contradictions on this topic.