The Vachon riding in the Montérégie region is set to go to the Parti Québécois (PQ) following a judicial recount held on Wednesday. However, the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) is refusing to concede victory to its rival. The PQ candidate, Stephan Fogaing, reportedly won the race in this Longueuil riding, according to a spokesperson for the PQ government. On Oct. 5, Fogaing finished second, behind Liberal candidate Affine Lwalalika, by a margin of just 10 votes. The close result prompted the PQ to request a judicial recount, which was granted by the Court of Quebec. The PLQ says it acknowledges the results of the judicial recount, which spanned three days, as well as the new vote total in the Vachon riding. “At this stage, we are not conceding victory to the Parti Québécois, and our lawyers are currently reviewing the situation and all the legal remedies available to us,” the party said on social media. “All options are on the table, and we will make a decision quickly on how to proceed,” the party added. For his part, the incumbent member for Vachon, Ian Lafrenière, congratulated Fogaing. “The judicial recount declared him the winner by 3 votes in Vachon. The phrase ‘every vote counts’ takes on its full meaning,” wrote the former Minister of Domestic Security on X. Lafrenière had finished third with nearly 21 per cent of the vote on election day. The PQ also requested a judicial recount in Champlain, in the Mauricie region, where the PQ candidate lost by 191 votes to Conservative candidate Adriana Szalontai. The Court of Quebec confirmed on Tuesday that a judicial recount will take place, set to begin Thursday morning at the Trois-Rivières courthouse. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 21, 2026.
