A new Quebec election poll conducted by Synopsis Recherche for La Presse shows the Parti Québécois (PQ) and the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) neck-and-neck, with the PQ’s early lead narrowing. Key details: The leaders Follow along for the latest updates: Fréchette says criteria for government aid needs to be tightened Under fire from her political opponents, who on Friday cited the economic failures of the Coalition Avenir Québec, leader Christine Fréchette finally hinted that she would tighten the criteria for government aid to businesses. Earlier in the morning, PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon accused her of lying about her true role in the collapse of Northvolt, the battery plant project that swallowed up hundreds of millions of dollars in public funds. Liberal leader Charles Milliard accused Fréchette of trying to disown her past and distance herself from her government’s failures. “I think we can indeed tighten the criteria,” she agreed during a press scrum in Disraeli, in the Centre-du-Québec region. “There are criteria. Points are assigned. They already exist, but we’re going to tighten them. In my view, we need to tighten them further because there are precautionary measures to adopt—additional measures.” The CAQ leader emphasized that, as Minister of the Economy, she was the one who had ended public funding for Northvolt and Lion Electric. But she refused to say at what stage of the application process—whether during caucus meetings, cabinet sessions, or ministry reviews—she had reached her decision and decided to cut off funding. - The Canadian Press Do campaign slogans work? Election signs are plastered all over the province trying to convey a party’s message in just a few words -- but do they work? The Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) is going with “Avançons” or “Let’s move forward” in English. The Parti Québécois slogan is “Le choix de la confiance” or “The choice of trust.” Meanwhile, the Quebec Liberals have chosen “Rassembler. Réparer. Bâtir.” or “Unite. Repair. Build.” “C’est possible” is the slogan for Québec solidaire, which translates to “It’s possible.” And for the Quebec Conservative Party, their message to voters is “Oser pour vrai,” which means “Dare for real.” Communications strategist Martine St-Victor says two of the slogans stand out to her: Québec solidaire’s, because it evokes hope, and the CAQ’s, because it focuses on trust. “And trust is probably the number one issue when you talk about the collectivity of political parties, because less than 60 per cent of Quebecers trust politicians - trust political institutions,” St-Victor told CTV News. CTV News spoke to people on the street on Friday to ask them what they thought of the parties’ slogans and whether they resonated with them. Watch the video below for the full report. - Laurence Brisson Dubreuil and Joe Lofaro Liberal talk trade, shake off new poll Voters who are abandoning the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) in favour of Christine Fréchette’s Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) are making a mistake, according to Liberal Party leader Charles Milliard. A Synopsis poll conducted for “La Presse” and published Friday morning shows that the CAQ has gained seven percentage points while the Liberals have lost six. Synopsis partner Youri Rivest told La Presse that “half of the CAQ’s gains come from the Liberals.” When asked by a reporter whether these voters were making a mistake, the Liberal leader replied, “The short answer is yes.” “Are we really going to have to endure another four years of the CAQ in Quebec? I’m going to make sure that doesn’t happen,” the Liberal leader said during a press briefing Friday in Sherbrooke. “I’ll make sure that the economic team that will bring prosperity to Quebec in the coming years will be Michel Leblanc, Julie White, Fred Beauchemin, and Madeleine Féquière—not Bernard Drainville or Nicolas Marceau, who have either diminished Quebec’s prosperity or even admitted to making mistakes. We can do much better,” he added. Charles Milliard is not overly concerned about his party’s decline in voter intentions. “I think that collectively, we need to take a deep breath. It hasn’t even been 24 hours since the campaign kicked off. Campaigns are useful.” Milliard stated that a Liberal government would set a goal of reducing exports to the United States by at least 15 percent. To achieve this, he hopes to forge new alliances with partners in Canada, Europe, and Francophone countries. - The Canadian Press QS targets grocery prices and promises to tackle unfair practices Quebec Solidaire is promising to tackle grocery prices by proposing three measures aimed at major grocery chains. Since the pandemic, the profit margins of major grocery chains “have nearly doubled,” said candidate for premier Ruba Ghazal during a press briefing held at a grocery store in Sherbrooke. “While your wallets are emptying, the pockets of the CEOs and shareholders of Loblaws and Walmart are filling up. We must find solutions,” said the Quebec Solidaire spokesperson. To “lower grocery bills,” QS proposes capping the profit margins of major chains at 15 per cent and banning “unfair practices,” such as excessive price hikes, fake discounts, and dynamic pricing. The left-wing party also reiterated on Friday its promise to create a network of 15 public grocery stores to “compete with the big players and drive prices down.” - The Canadian Press PQ vows to end ‘open bar’ for foreign multinationals A day after Quebec’s election was called, PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon attacked the CAQ’s economic record at the former Northvolt site, calling failed, “poorly designed” projects like it the CAQ’s “trademark” after eight years in power. He pledged to close the “open bar” on subsidies to foreign multinationals and instead cut Quebec SMEs’ corporate tax rate from 11.5 per cent to 9.5 per cent — saving a company with $5 million in taxable income about $90,000 a year. He said the cut would be funded by scrapping the Fonds de développement économique and reducing state “overintervention,” and would also pursue a broad deregulatory push to cut red tape for businesses. - Noovo Info CAQ announces new candidates The Coalition Avenir Québec announced Friday that Marc Grandbois will run in the Dubuc region and François Cormier will run in Lac-Saint-Jean. Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette said both candidates are well-versed in international trade and culture, issues she said she aims to highlight during the campaign. Grandbois has three decades of experience in the arts, business management, natural resource export and public service sectors. “Based in L’Anse-Saint-Jean, he is well acquainted with the realities of the regions he defends with conviction, the value of work carried out with rigour, and the importance of balancing economic development with cultural identity,” the press release states. Cormier is a professor of accounting and management at Collège d’Alma. His areas of focus include youth, professional and economic development. “Well-known in the business community, particularly for his involvement with OSEntreprendre and his role as a mentor with the Mentorat Saguenay network, François Cormier aims to put his experience and expertise to work for the citizens of Lac-Saint-Jean,” the release said. Robin Della Corte, CTVNewsMontreal.ca Election poll: CAQ, PQ neck-and-neck Voting intentions Among decided voters, the PQ under Paul St-Pierre Plamondon leads with 28 per cent, followed closely by the CAQ under Christine Fréchette at 27 per cent, up seven points since early August. The Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) (Charles Milliard) sits at 20 per cent, down six points, while the Conservative Party (PCQ) (Éric Duhaime) trails at 14 per cent and Québec Solidaire (Ruba Ghazal) at 10 per cent. Choice for premier Fréchette edges out Plamondon as Quebecers’ top pick for premier at 26 per cent to 23 per cent, though “none of the above” ties for third at 23 per cent. Government approval Quebecers are almost evenly split on the Fréchette government, with 43 per cent satisfied and 45 per cent dissatisfied, largely unchanged from early August. Opinion of leaders Fréchette is the only leader with net-positive sympathy (+8 points). Saint-Pierre Plamondon (-4), Milliard (-12), Ghazal (-17) and Duhaime (-32) are all losing ground. Sovereignty Support for Quebec independence holds steady at 31 per cent among those with an opinion on the issue, against 69 per cent opposed, unchanged since early August. Top priorities Health care remains the top concern among voters (54 per cent), followed by inflation and the cost of living (41 per cent) and housing (34 per cent). Concern over instability and the trade war with the U.S. jumped nine points to 29 per cent, driven largely by CAQ voters (48 per cent), far more than PQ (27 per cent) or QS voters (10 per cent). The survey was conducted by Synopsis Recherche among 1,009 Quebec adults between Aug. 24 and 26, 2026. - Amy Luft, CTVNewsMontreal.ca CAQ proposes expanding QPIP CAQ leader Christine Fréchette says she senses “a great openness” and “a buzz” around her. “My poll numbers are very favorable,” she said on the second day of her campaign, during a news conference in Rimouski. Fréchette announced an initial commitment on Friday aimed at families: the CAQ proposes to enhance the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP), in particular to allow fathers to spend more time with their babies. The CAQ leader emphasized that the QPIP was a “collective success,” but that it needed to “evolve” alongside Quebec families. In particular, the CAQ wants to extend paternity leave by two weeks and make the program more flexible to better involve grandparents and other close relatives. The party also proposes to improve benefits in the event of perinatal bereavement. Fréchette said that an increase in premiums is not necessary and that the program is self-funding. The Canadian Press Trade war looming over sovereignty debate The trade war with the United States is changing electoral priorities, experts say. A new report released by National Bank a few days before the campaign began found that Quebec is facing the highest effective tariff rate on exports among all of the provinces. It’s a situation that already appears to be placing Paul St-Pierre Plamondon on the defensive as his opponents argue it would be unwise to separate while Trump is threatening Canadian sovereignty. The Canadian Press PCQ has ‘high hopes’ ahead of election The leader of the Quebec Conservative Party (PCQ), Éric Duhaime, says he has high hopes for the Oct. 5 election. Duhaime says he expects his party to make significant inroads with voters. “This year is our year. 2026 is the year of the Conservatives,” said Duhaime at the launch of his election campaign in the riding of Bellechasse, where he is set to run for office. The Canadian Press
