CAQ drops to 3rd place: Quebecers want a clean sweep, poll suggests
Posted May 14, 2025 9:38 am.
Last Updated May 14, 2025 1:13 pm.
François Legault’s Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) has dropped to third place in voting intentions in the province, one point behind the Liberals, the worst score they’ve received since taking power in 2018, according to a new Léger–Le Journal poll.
The survey shows that the Parti Québecois (PQ) holds a lead in public support, at 33 per cent and favoured by Francophones — but the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) would dethrone the PQ and take the top spot if Pablo Rodriguez leads the PLQ as their leadership race is underway.
Another warning sign for the government: 63 per cent of respondents say they want a change of government.
The poll also indicates that 61 per cent of respondents are somewhat dissatisfied (31 per cent) or very dissatisfied (30 per cent) with the Legault government.
The poll also revealing that, if an election were held today, the PQ could form a majority government — and that Quebecers feel that Paul St-Pierre Plamondon would be the leader best suited to be premier — with 24 per cent, compared to 21 per cent for Legault, and 11 per cent for the PLQ’s interim leader, Marc Tanguay.
Rodriguez in the lead
There is one month left in the PLQ leadership race, and its outcome could be a game-changer in Quebec politics.
The poll indicates that 32 per cent of Liberal voters believe that former federal minister Rodriguez would make the best leader for their political party.
His opponents are far behind: former president of the Quebec Employers Council, Karl Blackburn, is at 6 per cent, former CEO of the Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce, Charles Milliard, at 4 per cent, tax lawyer Marc Bélanger, at 3 per cent, and Beauce farmer Mario Roy, at 0 per cent.
And Rodriguez’s arrival at the head of the Liberals would significantly shift the electorate, as the PLQ would reach 31 per cent of voting intentions, one point ahead of the PQ. With Karl Blackburn, the Liberals would rise to 25 per cent, and with Charles Milliard, 22 per cent.
This survey was conducted online from May 9 to 11, 2025, among 1,051 respondents aged 18 and older.
—With files from The Canadian Press, first published in French and translated by CityNews
