(Quebec) Éric Duhaime will hold his first vote of confidence as leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec on Sunday during his political party’s convention. Although former candidates continue to reiterate their support for the leader, there is a simultaneous attempt to lower expectations about the score he might achieve.
Published at 12:28 p.m. Updated at 2:40 p.m.
Thomas Laberge The Canadian Press
Former Beauce-Sud candidate Jonathan Poulin confirms there is internal criticism of Mr Duhaime’s leadership. “I sense that there is dissatisfaction,” he told La Presse Canadienne during the convention in Lévis, on Quebec’s south coast.
According to him, the leader runs the party too much alone. Nevertheless, Mr Poulin believes that Éric Duhaime is still the man for the job, at least for now.
“Mr Duhaime still has my support, but I hope that he listens to the complaints that are made to him because they are serious and if they do not listen to them, he will not be able to complain when members ask for it. “Leaving or not giving him the confidence,” he explains.
The former candidate in Beauce-Nord, Olivier Dumais, is more optimistic. “I think the vote of confidence will be good, very good,” he assures.
But what is a good result? Mr. Dumais hesitates before answering. “That’s a great question. […] I think over 70%, 80%… over 80%, I think it will be very good,” he finally says.
In May, Coalition Avenir Québec leader François Legault achieved a score of 98.6%. Two months earlier, Parti Québécois (PQ) leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon achieved 98.5%.
On Saturday, the Conservative leader declined to comment on what he would do if he received a very low score. “I will let the members vote,” he said.
At a press conference in Quebec on Friday, Éric Duhaime said he did not expect a stratospheric result like the prime minister’s. Instead, he believes he is getting a “fair” score.
A conservative source estimates the leader’s score could be between 75 and 85 percent. In 2005, Bernard Landry slammed the door on the PQ, humiliated by a score of 76%.
Former Conservative MP Claire Samson estimates that Éric Duhaime could receive around 85% support. “I think the party is moving in the right direction,” she claims.
Copernicus and Galileo
Controversial Laval University professor Patrick Provost came to give a speech at the congress in which he advocated for freedom of expression. He was greeted with shouts and applause from conservative activists.
Patrick Provost has been suspended multiple times by Laval University for speaking out against the messenger RNA vaccines used during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Without Copernicus and Galileo expressing their dissent, we would still believe today that the Earth is the center of the solar system. So I think it’s important to hear and listen to different opinions,” he said.
At the end of his speech, chef Éric Duhaime symbolically handed him a megaphone. “I want to give him something so that his voice can be heard […] Choking and censoring people is in an anti-democratic society,” he said.