Quebec leaders back on campaign trail after back-to-back debates

The leaders of Quebec’s five political parties were back on the campaign trail Thursday after back-to-back French-language debates this week.

Day 22 of the campaign saw Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette in Verchères and Saint-Hyacinthe.

Fréchette said the Quebec government is “closely monitoring” 30,000 jobs across some 60 companies reportedly vulnerable to tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.

The CAQ also made an election announcement, proposing to parents to spread the Quebec parental insurance plan over five years rather than just 18 months.

But the Wednesday night’s debate continued to dominate the campaign trail, with the Parti Québécois’ plans for a referendum taking centre stage.

Political analyst Daniel Tran said the issue was notably more prominent than during the first debate.

“Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, let’s remember, for the first debate, did not mention the word referendum. Now the word referendum was on everybody’s lips,” Tran said.

During Wednesday night’s debate, Fréchette questioned whether Quebec should add uncertainty by holding a referendum, while Quebec Liberal Party Leader Charles Milliard also challenged the PQ plan.

For his part, St-Pierre Plamondon defended his position, arguing that repeatedly describing a referendum as badly timed needs to be put into context.

Québec solidaire co-leader Ruba Ghazal said independence would not mean Quebec being against Canada, while Conservative Party Leader Éric Duhaime pointed to Quebec’s previous referendums in 1980 and 1995.

Tran said the debate was otherwise closely contested, with no leader clearly standing out.

“In this case, it was very neck and neck. Nobody really stood out,” he said. “However, when nobody really stands out during a debate, it usually gives a better advantage to the front-runner.”

Montrealers interviewed after the debate offered mixed reactions.

Pierre Beauchamp said the debate did not change his mind. “I’ll see if in the next debate something new comes up,” he said.

While Hussein Somani said the parties’ platforms can ultimately appear similar.

“Every party when they’re going to pitch their platform, at the end of the day, they all look the same,” said Somani.

Geneviève Desbarat said the debate was interesting and that the CAQ’s position could benefit from the current situation in the United States, while she remained opposed to the idea of holding a referendum.

With the final debate still ahead, Tran said the party leaders have one more major opportunity to make their case directly to Quebec voters.

“The next debate will be the last one. So it is the last opportunity that they will have a frank discussion with Quebecers,” he said.

Thursday leader of the Parti Québécois, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, started the day in Longueuil before moving to Drummondville and Quebec City.

Asked again about a referendum, the PQ leader emphasized Quebec is not in a referendum campaign right now, but “in an election campaign to form a government.”

Fréchette’s opponents also continued to challenge her over the CAQ’s nearly eight years in power.

During the debate, St-Pierre Plamondon accused the government of wasting more than $6 billion, while Milliard compared CAQ spending to “shopping at Costco.”

Fréchette acknowledged the government had not been perfect, saying it had learned from its mistakes and corrected past errors.

Tran said the accountability challenge could give Fréchette an opportunity to present a more personal side of her leadership.

“For Mrs. Fréchette, accountability is a great strategy because it allows you to communicate in a more human way,” Tran said.

Quebec Liberal Party Leader Charles Milliard made a health-related announcement in Mégantic, committing to strengthening local care teams with an additional $200-million investment and making the CLSC an anchor point for Quebecers. Milliard also pledged to maintain obstetric services in the regions.

Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal was in Sherbrooke to announce a measure to support families and help alleviate the cost of living.

Conservative Party Leader Éric Duhaime spent the day in the Chaudière-Appalaches and Capitale-Nationale regions, where he unveiled the party’s agricultural plan.

The Conservatives are vowing to remove red tape for Quebec farmers. Duhaime pledged to ease existing regulations and not to impose any new restrictive agricultural regulations for four years.

The party also promised to designate primary food processing as an essential service, which would help limit losses during labour disputes.

“You are farmers, not civil servants. By simplifying rules, speeding up decisions, and securing the processing sector, we are removing concrete obstacles for those who feed Quebec,” Duhaime said.

Both Fréchette and Milliard welcomed this week’s talks between Ottawa and the European Union, which they say could open new markets for Quebec.