Parti Québécois leader accused of backtracking on sovereignty referendum

After the fourth straight byelection win, Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon's intent for a referendum is being questioned.

Following his victory in the Chicoutimi byelection, PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon was accused by his opponents of backtracking on his promise to hold a referendum during his first term.

“He sees that his option is going down the drain, and I think he needs to announce it much more clearly and much more firmly than he did last night. We heard little beeps indicating that there was a backtracking, but it wasn’t audible to everyone,” Conservative leader Éric Duhaime said Tuesday at a news conference in Quebec City.

On Monday evening, after the victory of his candidate, Marie-Karlynn Laflamme, the Parti Québécois leader said he had met people who were “truly afraid” of the referendum.

St-Pierre Plamondon also did not rule out waiting until after Donald Trump’s term in office to hold a referendum.

“We will use intelligence and judgement in choosing the right moment, because our priority will always be to protect Quebecers,” he said at the time.

Quebec Liberal leader Charles Milliard said the PQ leader had made a “political pirouette.”

“Article 1 of the PQ is to separate Quebec. I think he intends to be true to his goal. Now, will he want to delay it within a first term? The best way to avoid that, of course, is to elect a Liberal government in October,” he said.

Former PQ minister and current Coalition Avenir Quebec leadership candidate Bernard Drainville accused St-Pierre Plamondon of being “irresponsible.”

“He says, ‘Elect me and there may or may not be a referendum. It will depend on my mood.’ ... We know the old strategy: tell the sovereigntists that a referendum is coming, while leading others to believe that there won’t be one,” he wrote on social media on Tuesday.

“We saw Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon change his mind. After saying, ‘There will be a referendum, there will be a referendum, there will be a referendum,’ now we’re no longer sure. He’s backing down on his convictions,” said Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette.

The other sovereigntist party, Quebec Solidaire (QS), admits that the geopolitical context may create uncertainty, but that this should not mean backing down on independence.

“The Parti Québécois has been around for a long time, and since 1995, it has been in its DNA to back down on the issue of independence. So, obviously, we are keeping an eye on them. We will not back down,” said Sol Zanetti of QS.

At a news conference on Tuesday, St-Pierre Plamondon said that he was staying the course and that he would hold a referendum on independence during his first term.

“I am very confident that there will be a window of opportunity within four years, so we are maintaining our commitment,” he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Feb. 24, 2026.