The mobilizing effect of the pandemic appears to have weakened within the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ). In 2023, Éric Duhaime's political party collected just $56,825 in donations from its base, an amount barely equivalent to a third of its leader's salary.
This result hardly compares to the $676,101 the PCQ raised in 2022, as it was an election year in which donors could donate up to $200, twice what is normally approved becomes.
However, in 2021, the PCQ had raised $300,877, almost six times more than the previous year. There is a fairly clear break, it is not a marginal decline, analyzes Éric Montigny, professor of political science at the University of Laval.
According to him, the PCQ may be suffering from the impact of the demobilization of members who had joined its ranks in response to COVID-19 health measures. The pandemic is far behind us, so the party needs to mobilize its base again on other issues. It can be more difficult.
We will have to wait and see how the trend develops over time, but there is still a worrying signal behind these numbers.
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Éric Montigny, professor of political science at the University of Laval
Photo: Radio-Canada / Nicolas Bilodeau
The 2023 data, obtained using Élections Québec's donor research tool, shows the PCQ is back to the same level of public funding as it was in 2020, the year Éric Duhaime announced he was running for chief will run for office.
However, in 2021 and 2022, the PCQ had reached levels of popular funding comparable to that of Québec solidaire (QS) and the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ).
Even in the Beauce-Nord and Beauce-Sud constituencies, where the PCQ almost won against the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) in the last general election, donations have fallen.
In Saint-Georges, for example, the PCQ raised just $50 last year, compared to more than $5,000 in 2022 and more than $3,300 in 2021.
Not worried
Éric Duhaime declined Radio-Canada's interview request. However, his press spokesman assured via email that he was not worried at all.
On the contrary: if an election were to take place today, we could win up to 10 constituencies […], including Beauce-Nord and Beauce-Sud. This is unique, says Cédric Lapointe, who says he trusts the Qc125 statistical election forecasting model.
The pandemic has allowed tens of thousands of Quebecers to become interested in politics and even join and donate to the Quebec Conservative Party. I am proud of our democratic contribution to society.
If public funding has fallen so sharply in 2023, it is because the PCQ has instead focused its efforts on developing its political program, explains Mr. Lapointe. Members and donors were not called [l’année dernière].
Government financing
Despite everything, the financial stability of the PCQ is not at risk in the medium term. After receiving around 13% of the vote in the last general election, the party now receives an annual grant from Élections Québec comparable to that of the PLQ, QS and the Parti Québécois (PQ).
In the year following the election, the PCQ received almost $1.5 million thanks to this funding mechanism.
However, Professor Éric Montigny sees this as a paradox for the PCQ. This puts the political party at odds with its main ideology of state non-interventionism. It becomes really dependent on government funding.
Mr Montigny also emphasizes that the PLQ is also in a special financial situation. In fact, Marc Tanguay's troops raised just $271,157 last year, slightly less than QS ($276,419) and much less than the PQ ($766,907) and CAQ ($814,319).
We must not forget that not so long ago it was the party that could raise the most money. This is a radical change in the financial picture of the Liberal Party, analyzes Montigny.
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