The word “freedom” was on everyone’s lips during the announcement of 10 new candidates for the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) in the greater Montreal area, Monday evening in the city center. The aspirants will try to delight castles caquists, solidarity and liberals during the elections of October 3rd.
More than a hundred supporters were on hand to cheer on the new candidates at the Pub St-Paul, in Montreal, in the presence of the team leader, Éric Duhaime. Jayson Paquette-Gendron, Louise Poudrier and Emmanuel Da Costa will be respectively candidates in Gouin, Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and Mercier, where the deputies of Quebec solidaire announce themselves difficult to dislodge.
Opposing in particular the leader of the Liberal Party, Dominique Anglade, in Saint-Henri–Sainte-Anne, candidate Mischa White delivered an energetic speech in which the demand for more freedom for citizens was in the spotlight. In another Liberal stronghold, the constituency of Robert-Baldwin, financial adviser Alex Lellouche will try his luck. “I find people asleep. The decisions are made in Quebec, and we, the English-speaking minority, we have to follow the masses, ”denounces in an interview the one who strongly opposes Bill 96.
The other candidacies announced Monday evening are those of Évelyne Latreille, in Laporte, Sabrina Ait Akil, in Mont-Royal–Outremont, Lucien Koty, in Verdun, and Louise Sexton, in Maurice-Richard. Against the Premier of Quebec, François Legault, in the riding of L’Assomption, Esnesto Almeida will wear the colors of his party.
“We are a bit of the unknown of the campaign”
“I am surprised to see the growth of the party […] in cultural and English-speaking communities. We have reached 17 or 18 countries represented [parmi nos candidatures] », rejoiced Éric Duhaime in an interview with The duty. “It may not be a coincidence, given our discourse in favor of civil rights and individual freedoms, since these people have often come to Quebec for these values, adds Mr. Duhaime. Seeing the drift of recent years brought back bad memories. »
A speech to which the new candidate of the party in L’Assomption, Esnesto Almeida, originally from Cuba, seems to adhere. In front of the enthusiastic crowd, he maintained that the “totalitarian government” of François Legault had shown “emotional blackmail” in recent years. “There is no question that I or my descendants will experience communism again,” he also condemned in an official press release. Mr. Almeida received loud applause from the audience.
Believing that “there is no lost county”, Mr. Duhaime is confident about the outcome of the elections for his party: “We are the party with the strongest growth potential because we are the most unknown of the group. We are the one who has been there for the shortest time. »
Assuring that “internal CAQ polls say that we are ahead in some of their own ridings,” he is targeting seats beyond the Quebec region, where the party enjoys the support of a quarter of the electorate, according to a recent Léger poll. “I take it for granted that we have a chance everywhere. We are the unknown of the campaign, in a way. Mr. Duhaime also took the opportunity to shoot a few arrows at François Legault, who “politicized and instrumentalized the health crisis for partisan purposes”, according to him.
Asked about the possibility that the actor Guillaume Lemay-Thivierge, with whom he made a parachute jump the day before and which he promoted on social networks, could be a candidate for training, Mr. Duhaime shook his head . “It was I who was doing a parachute jump, not Guillaume who was jumping into politics. »
“Rediscovering our joy of living”
Seated in front of plates of nachos or hamburgers in the moist heat of the restaurant, the supporters welcomed Éric Duhaime by singing his name at the top of their lungs. “We want to reconnect with the heritage and with the pride of being Quebecers,” he said, referring to a theme dear to François Legault, that of pride.
Met on site, Michael Cigana, 20, was at his first event organized by the PCQ. “I have many friends my age who support the PCQ because they feel that the government has abandoned them”, underlines the one who dropped out of school recently, too demotivated by virtual lessons. “The economic right reaches young people less, but by attacking the government’s draconian measures, the PCQ has won a lot of points. »
“We want to regain our freedom, our joie de vivre,” says Sylvie, seated in the front row, in front of the small stage set up for the occasion. “We no longer want to be told what to do,” adds Danièle, seated opposite.
According to a Léger poll published last month, the PCQ currently receives 15% of voting intentions in Quebec, which places it in third place. The Qc125 electoral projection site, however, predicts the election of only one member of the party, its leader, Éric Duhaime, currently in good standing in the riding of Chauveau. With Monday’s announcements, the number of officially nominated candidates for the party now stands at 76.