Former Montreal mayor Denis Coderre considering Quebec Liberal Party leadership run

Former Montreal mayor and former federal minister Denis Coderre is considering running for the position of leader of the Quebec Liberal Party.

In an article published in LaPresse Wednesday morning, Coderre said he is seriously considering the idea of entering the race for leadership of the party. Coderre also publicly discussed the question of running in an interview with David Heurtel on CJAD 800 last week, when he said he was “thinking about it.”

In a radio column on community station CKVL Wednesday afternoon, he said he’ll make a final decision after a trip to Europe in May.

The party has been without a leader since the departure of Dominique Anglade in November 2022, after capturing just 14.3 per cent of Quebecers’ votes in the provincial election.

In a Nov. 2022 Léger poll, nearly one in five Liberal supporters felt Coderre would be the best person to replace Anglade.

Coderre says he’s been holding meetings with members of the party to gauge his support and was happy with the reception– he said he jokingly told them “maybe Coderre is the man for the job.”

The 60-year-old was a federal MP between 1997 and 2013 and served as Montreal’s mayor from 2013 to 2017. He ran again in 2017 and 2022, defeated both times by incumbent mayor Valérie Plante.

Since then, he has worked as a consultant and radio sports commentator before suffering a stroke last April. He has since recovered and has been given the greenlight to get back to work.

In his column, Coderre said he was against ageism in politics and that his experience, both on the municipal and federal scene, had value.

“I think he’s quite capable,” says political analyst, Karim Boulos. “I think his name recognition would certainly precede him. I think he has motivation to do something for Quebec. I think he’s a very proud Quebecer. I think he would be reflecting Quebec values, liberal values and would represent the party well, but at the end of the day, they shouldn’t be just looking for a leader. I think they need to find someone who can become Premier. And so the question is, could he win a leadership race? Arguably, yes. Could become the next leader, but will Denis Coderre beat Mr. Legault?”

There isn’t an official announcement on the radar, but Coderre’s behind the scenes campaign is now coming to light. CityNews reached out to Coderre for comment, but haven’t heard back.

“I think that Mr. Coderre would have his liberal base on the Island of Montreal and he would probably do quite well in the regions. I think the question is, is Mr. Coderre ready to put in the time and effort to go and seek out those regional votes and rekindle the liberal fire in some of the regions where the local associations are practically non-existent?” asks Boulos.

“It would be a grassroots type of movement and Mr. Coderre, in the last municipal election, we saw didn’t do a great job at a grassroots level. On a more macro level, I think he’s very strong, but is he the right person to get the base reignited? That’s up for debate.”

For now, only Liberal MNA Frédéric Beauchemin has shown interest in entering the race. Marc Tanguay is the interim leader until a new leader is elected in the spring of 2025.