Marc Bélanger not running for Quebec Liberal leadership race in 2026

Quebec Liberal Leadership candidate Marc Belanger speaks during a debate in Quebec City Thursday, May 22, 2025. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press)

International trade lawyer Marc Bélanger confirmed that he is not putting his name forward a second time to lead the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) after the resignation of Pablo Rodriguez.

“Following Pablo Rodriguez’s departure, several people reached out to ask whether I would consider running again for the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party. I took the time to reflect seriously, and my decision is as follows: I will not be a candidate,” he wrote in a post on Facebook Thursday.

Part of the reason, he said, is because he has yet to pay back the debt he incurred from his 2025 leadership campaign, which, by law, has to be paid back from donations. He also said the short window of time for the 2026 leadership race and other professional obligations prevent him from starting another campaign.

“The fact that I am not a candidate does not mean I am withdrawing from politics or that I will remain silent, quite the opposite. Politics is often a matter of timing. This time, it simply was not the right one for me,” he wrote.

Bélanger got 14,659 points or 3.9 per cent of the vote in the 2025 leadership race, held June 14.

Only two people have put their names forward so far in the 2026 leadership race: Charles Milliard, the former head of the Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce, and Mario Roy, an economist and farmer.

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Milliard came in second in the 2025 race, securing 178,527 points or 47.7 per cent of the vote.

Rodriguez came in first with 52.3 per cent of the vote (195,602 points). His tenure only lasted six months after he resigned on Dec. 17, 2025, amid the growing scandal within his party over allegations of a cash-for-votes scheme.

Another contender from the last race has also declared he is not running again — Karl Blackburn, the former president of a Quebec employers group. He secured 27.6 per cent of the vote with 103,265 points.

Roy, who received less than one per cent of the vote in 2025, announced on Tuesday on social media that he intends to run again.

Roy, Blackburn, and Bélanger, were all eliminated after the first round of voting last June.

Candidates need to pay a $40,000 non-refundable fee for their declaration of candidacy, according to the rules set by the PLQ.

A new leader will be chosen on March 14.