MONTREAL - Quebec party leaders kicked off 39 days of door knocking and hand shaking with talks of trade and tariffs dominating much of the provincial election campaign launch. Premier Christine Frechette, leader of the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ), visited the lieutenant-government to dissolve the National Assembly and asked for an Oct. 5 election date. “I would tell you President Trump is my principal opponent,” Frechette said during her first news conference of the campaign. “He is the one disturbing, completely disturbing our trade links with the United States, our trade links and our economy.” Frechette, who was chosen to lead the CAQ and become premier in April, says this campaign will be like no other. She described the trade dispute as a storm and says the province’s main economic partner has chosen confrontation and threatening the province’s economy. She added that her team would create stability, predictability as the storm from the south builds. “Our team does not work for or against Ottawa, we work for Quebec,” she added. ‘We have to fight back’ Many in Quebec have urged a future provincial government to fix roads, hospitals, and schools, but now also worry about the economic impacts of the tariffs. They are also trying to decipher how much of a threat the U.S. could pose to the province’s national identity and language. When U.S. President Donald Trump posted online that he loved French Canadians, many were incredulous. “That is not reassuring at all,“ says Suzanne Chenel, as she enjoyed a sunny day on a pedestrian street in Montreal. “He is trying to manipulate us.” Robert Chretien, a retired baker said protecting the French language was a top priority for him. “We have to stand up for ourselves, and if we were attacked by the U.S. then we have to fight back,” he says. The Parti Quebecois (PQ), with Paul St-Pierre Plamondon at the helm, has led in the polls in the province since 2023. He has promised to strike a balance between replacing the CAQ, after what he said were eight years of misspending and failing to address Quebecers’ priorities and holding a referendum on sovereignty within his first term. “That status of independent country can only help,” St-Pierre Plamondon said in a news conference surrounded by PQ candidates. “We have seen several countries, some smaller than Quebec, doing very well with the United States in terms of diplomacy and making sure their interests are respected” he said. Still, earlier this month, the PQ announced it would not hold a referendum while Trump was still in office, as polls suggested the electoral race was tightening. Quebecers voting options The CAQ’s popularity had spiralled under former premier Francois Legault, but the party is now showing signs of life. Frechette was asked whether she was stoking fear of the U.S. to boost her party’s electoral fortunes. “It’s a serious threat,” she answered. “I am not playing with anything. Trump tries to play with us with one threat after another. We need to adapt.” Still, the leader of the Quebec Conservative Party said both the PQ and the CAQ were fuelling concerns about the trade dispute and that the Quebec Liberal party was banking on fears of a referendum to win votes. He says his party is working on solutions. “The instability brought on by Donald Trump’s tariffs should serve as a wake-up call for Quebec,” he said. “We can’t make decisions for our neighbours to the south; we can’t predict how they will negotiate in coming months. However, we have the power to act on what we can control to make Quebec a competitive business environment.” Quebecers also have other options. The leader of the provincial Liberals, Charles Milliard, is a former president of the Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce. Quebec Solidaire, a democratic socialist party, is also a sovereigntist option led by Ruba Ghazal. While Trump’s name is clearly not on the ballot, analysts say it is likely to be one repeated often along the 39-day campaign trail.
