Jean-Talon byelection: Marie-Anik Shoiry will run for the CAQ

Marie-Anik Shoiry will be the CAQ candidate in the upcoming Jean-Talon byelection. LA PRESSE CANADIENNE/Thomas Laberge

Marie-Anik Shoiry will be the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) candidate in the upcoming Jean-Talon byelection.

Premier François Legault made the announcement Tuesday after spending the day in the Quebec-City area riding.

Shoiry is the CEO and founder of Vide ta sacoche, a charity that collects and distributes hygiene and cosmetic products for vulnerable people.

She has lived in Jean-Talon since she was a child. A lawyer by training, she is also the daughter of former municipal councillor Paul Shoiry.

The seat in Jean-Talon has been vacant since CAQ MNA Joëlle Boutin resigned on July 31.

A TWO-WAY RACE

It’s looking like the riding’s tightest race will be between the CAQ and the Parti Québécois (PQ), according to data from poll aggregator Qc125.

Although the byelection campaign period has not yet officially started, the PQ candidate, Pascal Paradis, has already made headlines.

La Presse reported last week that Paradis, who is the co-founder and CEO of Lawyers Without Borders Canada, had previously spoken with the CAQ about the possibility of running with that party during the last general election.

Paradis said Quebec Premier Francois Legault’s chief of staff, Martin Koskinen, had offered him a shot at running in the Charlevoix-Côte-de-Beaupré riding.

The CAQ, for its part, maintained that it was Paradis who asked for the assurance that he would have a spot in cabinet if he were elected, which the CAQ could not promise him.

Paradis also said that Koskinen told him that the CAQ was going to abandon the Third Link project after the election, which François Legault's CAQ denies.

Paradis ultimately refused the CAQ's offer.

All major parties have now selected candidates for the by-election in Jean-Talon. The Liberal candidate is Élise Avard Bernier, co-founder of the Vie de parents website.

Québec solidaire members elected Olivier Bolduc, even though the executive preferred a female candidate and had recommended voting for his opponent, Christine Gilbert.

Jesse Robitaille will wear colours for Éric Duhaime's Conservative Party. The head of Climat Québec, Martine Ouellet, announced that she will also throw her hat in the ring.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 29, 2023