Quebec solidaire is meeting in national council in Montreal, Saturday, to take stock of its election campaign. On the menu: simplify its proposals and avoid being accused again by its opponents of imposing “orange taxes”.
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Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois notably returned to the proposal to tax the purchase of energy-intensive vehicles, during a press scrum which preceded the event. “This proposal needs to be improved, in particular, it was complex. It allowed some of our opponents to attack us, ”commented the QS co-spokesperson.
With the tax on large fortunes and on inheritances of more than $1 million, this proposal allowed the CAQ to accuse the solidarity groups of wanting to tax Quebecers even more.
An influential member of the party, François Saillant, summed it up this way: “when in an election campaign you campaign positively and you say ‘we’re going to tax’, maybe that’s not the right thing to say”. .
Even if he agreed with the strategy, the political formation must now concentrate on making the electorate dream during the next electoral campaign, he believes.
Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois does not exclude that new taxes will again be on the menu in 2026, but they will have to be better explained. “I think people […] want it to be fair. I think they are ready to make the effort, but they expect the biggest polluters to do it too,” he observes.
“This justice, in the climate transition, is essential, believes Mr. Nadeau-Dubois. We have to find measures that empower the people who are most responsible for climate change, and that’s the oil companies, the major polluters. We have to make sure that we fight climate change in such a way that no one feels unnecessarily singled out. »
Simplify without getting lost
The left party will therefore try this weekend to find a balance in order to simplify its message even further, without losing its roots.
“I think that Québec solidaire, in order to grow, must present an electoral platform that is achievable within a four-year term. We must translate our social project, which is ambitious, into a political proposal that we will be able to carry out as a future government. We have to do that without betraying our core ideals,” says Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois.
His colleague Manon Massé agrees. “I don’t think we’re going to do a slogan campaign,” she said on Friday evening to illustrate the balance to be achieved.
For his part, MP Vincent Marissal points out that other factors have harmed QS during the last election campaign. The party faced the “unusual strength of the CAQ”. “It’s called a wave,” he said. We had water up to our knees, at least we didn’t drown, unlike other parties. »
Regional challenge
After a first presentation in the early morning, Québec solidaire continued its assessment behind closed doors before the lunch break. The media therefore had to leave without being able to hear the grievances of the delegates.
QS will also have to try to find solutions to two important issues for the future of training.
The party will have to try to perform better in the regions, having lost at least 1% of the votes in 45 rural or suburban constituencies.
The formation also finds itself with a non-parity caucus, made up of four women and seven men. The Guillaume Cliche-Rivard candidacy during the by-election in Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne could aggravate this imbalance.
The elected representatives, however, argue that the party has made a lot of effort to present interesting female candidates in the counties that can be taken.
In view of 2026, QS will study the possibility of imposing female candidates in constituencies deemed favorable.