The next provincial campaign is expected to start on August 29 and last 36 days, a way for the government to exploit ad spending rules, an expert has said.
Posted at 5:00 am
Vincent Larin The Press
It was also Prime Minister François Legault who spilled the beans during a press conference last month when he presented his candidate riding Repentigny, former journalist Pascale Déry.
“We will have an election platform that we will publish day by day during the 36 days of the election campaign. I have to stay away from news,” said the prime minister, a statement that went unnoticed.
If we go back to the calendar of October 3, 2022, the date of the election according to the electoral law, we can conclude that the election campaign would therefore start on Monday 29 August.
Mr Legault’s press secretary, Ewan Sauves, who was contacted on Wednesday, declined to comment on the Prime Minister’s remarks. “We will not start speculating on the date of the outbreak [de la campagne électorale]. We will announce it in time. The elections will take place as planned on October 3,” he said.
However, the government will announce its intention a few days beforehand, he specified, as did François Legault’s predecessor, Philippe Couillard, in 2018. “Everyone will be certain some time before the official start. »
legislative period expires
When asked about the issue, Quebec’s chief electoral officer said he had received no information from the government about an Aug. 29 trip.
“According to the electoral law, an electoral decree must be issued no later than Monday, August 29, the end date of the legislature,” recalled the organization’s spokesman, Gabriel Sauvé-Lesiège.
According to the Electoral Law, “the election will take place on the fifth Monday after the decree is issued if the decree is issued on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, and on the sixth Monday if the decree is issued on any other day”. This means the government was free to choose any date between Thursday 25th August and Monday 29th August to trigger the next campaign.
“Remember, however, that although the electoral law now provides for fixed-date elections, the lieutenant governor’s prerogative to dissolve the National Assembly before the end of the legislature is not affected. The campaign could therefore also be triggered earlier,” he concluded.
Recall that in March 2014, former Prime Minister Pauline Marois also used this provision to launch an election campaign in Quebec about a year and a half after she was elected leader of a minority government.
For the good of the government
But launching the next election campaign at the last minute would be in the government’s favour, believes Thierry Giasson, director and senior researcher of the Political Communications Research Group at Laval University.
This can tell us that their campaign plan is well aligned and that they want to exploit the loopholes in the electoral law when it comes to spending.
Thierry Giasson, Director of the Political Communication Research Group at Laval University
In fact, political parties’ spending is tightly controlled once the election campaign has started, which was not the case just before, “a huge problem” in Mr Giasson’s eyes.
In Ontario, as at the federal level, all expenses incurred six months before the start of the campaign are considered electoral expenses, which is not the case in Quebec. So, the parties with the most resources can use this to do more publicity before hostilities officially begin.
In an interview with The Canadian Press published Wednesday, Chief Electoral Officer Pierre Reid expressed his “concern” about this “open pole” of primary election advertising. He also believes that the electoral law needs to be tightened to ensure a balance between the parties.
ready to object
Behind the scenes, the news of a late start didn’t seem to surprise anyone in the opposition, while almost everyone braced for the eventuality.
“We can’t wait to go to the campaign. Finally we can debate with François Legault, who has been in hiding all summer, refusing debates and interviews,” responded Quebec Liberal Party communications director Jeremy Ghio.
“Regardless of the number of days, our team is ready and we are already on the ground throughout Quebec. We will show that Québec solidaire is the alternative to the Coalition avenir Québec,” commented the second opposition group’s communications director, Stéphanie Guèvremont.
“We can’t wait to get started! ‘ confirmed the leader of the Parti Québécois, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
“The reason they are doing this is to have an undemocratic advantage over other parties. He does everything so that we have as little time as possible. It is in full continuity with CAQ party politics,” protested Quebec Conservative Party leader Éric Duhaime.