Quebec voters elected a Parti Québécois (PQ) minority government Monday, completing a dramatic political comeback and paving the way for an eventual third sovereignty referendum. Here are five takeaways from the evening. Back from the brink After being reduced to three seats in the 2022 election, the Parti Québécois stormed back to form a government, falling short of the 64 seats needed to form a majority in the Quebec legislature. The party was able to capitalize on Quebecers’ desire for change after eight years of Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) rule in the province. Promising a referendum Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon won his party’s leadership in 2020 with a promise to hold a referendum if he formed a government. Although his party fell short of a majority government, he may have an opportunity to work with Québec solidaire, a left-wing sovereigntist party that could support his plans to stage a referendum after U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the White House in 2029. The Parti Québécois and Québec solidaire combined for more than 40 per cent of the popular vote on Monday evening. Together, the two sovereigntist parties also captured a majority of the seats in the National Assembly. Strong Opposition Voters chose the Quebec Liberals (PLQ) as the official Opposition for the third general election in a row. The party more than doubled its seats in the legislature, finishing the evening with 40 elected members. Leader Charles Milliard said his party was the only federalist party committed to remaining in Canada, although he is not the only leader who has pledged to block plans for a referendum. Conservatives surge Conservatives last elected a member to the Quebec legislature in 1935. The party will now form a strong contingent in the legislature with a caucus of 19. Under Éric Duhaime’s leadership, the party surged from a marginal formation that captured less than two per cent of the vote in 2018 to a main player. The party ran a campaign that was largely targeted on key ridings, after failing to capture a seat in 2022 despite getting close to 13 per cent of the vote. Duhaime has also pledged to stop the PQ from staging a referendum on sovereignty. Fragmented political landscape Five parties ended the evening with more than 10 per cent of the vote and none had more than 30 per cent of the votes that were counted. The PQ came close to forming a majority government, even though it only received about 28 per cent of the total number of votes counted on Monday. The Liberals had about 24 per cent, while the Conservatives had about 21 per cent. Coalition Avenir Québec had about 13 per cent of the vote, but failed to win any seats, while Québec solidaire, which had about 12 per cent of the vote, won nine seats. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 5, 2026.
