Deprived of seats in the National Assembly, the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) is already trying to carve out a place for itself in the corridors of Parliament by other means, while maintaining its strong presence on social networks. But the four years promise to be difficult for Éric Duhaime’s troops.
“He is about to make a very long crossing of the desert, it will be very hot and there will not be much water”, illustrates the vice-president of Tact Conseil, Yan Plante. Getting elected was Éric Duhaime’s number one challenge, he says. But Monday night, he was defeated in Chauveau 47% against 32%.
Deprived of deputies, his political party could lose the momentum which nevertheless allowed him to settle 13% of the voting intentions.
Especially since the other opposition parties are likely to have more bite in the coming months and “will become real opposition again,” warns Mr. Plante. Éric Duhaime will therefore no longer be able to plead that he is the only one to upset the government.
“It’s very disappointing,” laments outgoing MP Claire Samson, who expected the PCQ to elect at least “a couple” of MPs. The former MP for Iberville, who had left the CAQ to join the Conservatives, however thinks that Éric Duhaime could possibly poach another elected CAQ member as he did with her. “There are going to be a lot of disappointed people at the CAQ…”, she predicts.
Monday evening, some members of the Conservative leader were in tears at the sight of the results. But this was not the case of Adrien Pouliot, who led the party for nearly ten years before giving up his place.
“I take the long-term strategic vision. Yesterday, at the rally, it was quite interesting because there were the “old timers” who were there at the PCQ in 2012, in 2018… They were all smiles because we still made 13%! While the younger ones were a little discouraged. »
Legault rejects the idea
But Mr. Pouliot was still disappointed to see Beauce escape them. Beaten by 202 votes Monday in Beauce-Nord, candidate Olivier Dumais argues that an abnormally high number of ballots were rejected. The party must normally submit a formal request for the contents of the ballot boxes to be reviewed. But with a difference of 200 votes, it is unlikely that the results will be overturned, according to Yan Plante.
Meanwhile, leader Éric Duhaime urges the National Assembly to relax its rules to make room for him even if he has not elected any deputy. “I think it’s legitimate,” he argued Tuesday noon on the Midi Info program. “Will we be able, for example, to hold our press conferences like all the other parties at the Press Tribune, at the National Assembly? Are we going to be able to have an office? Will we be able to have a research and communication budget? “.
A proposal soon rejected by Prime Minister Legault on Tuesday afternoon. But Éric Duhaime already has a well-constructed argument to dispel objections to his demands. “I think it’s important. We represent one out of seven Quebeckers. If we want Quebeckers to maintain confidence in the institutions, it would be the first time in the history of Quebec that one out of seven Quebeckers votes for a party and that party finds itself outside. »
In the meantime, he still has the precious communication channels that he developed with his base before the election campaign: his Twitter account and his Facebook page which are very popular and above all, his famous “live” on Tuesday evening, a weekly online meeting which attracts thousands of activists every week.
Opening of English speakers
Éric Duhaime promised that his adventure in politics would last ten years and as he says himself, he is still far from the mark. Moreover, in the last days of the campaign, he had already started talking about 2026.
His party came second in 28 of the 125 ridings, nearly half of which are in the greater Quebec City region. Otherwise, it is in Mauricie and in Centre-du-Québec that the party has done the best. With the exception of Trois-Rivières, its candidates took second place everywhere behind the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ).
The PCQ has also made gains in Greater Montreal, especially in ridings where there is a high proportion of allophone or anglophone voters. The party finished in second or third place in 10 of the 27 constituencies in the metropolis, particularly in the west of the island.
Nearly one in four voters (22.4%) supported the PCQ in the English-speaking bastion of D’Arcy-McGee, 15.9% in Robert-Baldwin and 15.1% in Nelligan, all in western the island of Montreal.
“Mr. Duhaime was one of the few leaders who decided to speak to our community,” said Eva Ludvig, president of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN). The leader of the PCQ participated in a virtual assembly with the QCGN and took note of their opposition to Bill 96, which notably limits attendance at English-speaking CEGEPs and adds French courses at the college level.
The Anglophone advocacy body remains non-partisan, but members of the community have strongly criticized the Liberal Party for its dithering over Bill 96.
“It is something that is very important for the English-speaking community to know that the parties are trying to understand our concerns. That’s the lesser of it. We are Quebecers like everyone else,” adds Eva Ludvig.