After its second term, the Legault government in Quebec continues to enjoy great popularity. Under the sign of trust, this government once had a very reassuring effect in times of the pandemic crisis. In fact, Mr Legault’s widespread popularity is due to his reassuring image of the “good father” who has good values and judgment based on “common sense”.
In short, Quebecers, like all voters around the world, place their primary trust in the emotions they feel towards their leaders. It has to be said that after all the Liberal years and its commissions of inquiry, we really needed it.
Let’s never forget that politics is first and foremost an affair of the heart. The Parti Québécois has never shone as brightly as it did under the leadership of its charismatic leader, René Lévesque, and the NDP’s famous “orange wave” would never have happened without the presence of Jack Layton.
When the head comes into play
Over time, the facts keep asking us how we feel emotionally. In a love relationship we then speak of the stage of disillusionment. Then the toothbrush lying on the worktop and the misplaced toilet bowl start to irritate us.
But for some time now, several events have been bothering us in the CAQ. Whether we’re thinking of Mr Jolin-Barrette, who chose one of his friends to be his judge, or Ms Duranceau, who wants tenants to lose their rights after meeting her business partner with whom she contributed to real estate speculation.
And what about the great Mr. Fitzgibbon, that “superminister” who has faced at least six investigations by the Ethics Commissioner, including one involving a $50 million grant paid to a company that was owned jointly by the former representative of his trust?
A fading image
All these facts are beginning to affect the credibility of Mr Legault’s government, which has always unreservedly supported the ministers under attack in the publicized embezzlement. Bloated by his popularity, the prime minister doesn’t realize that the self-assurance, and sometimes even arrogance, displayed by his supporters about democratic rules is increasingly perceived as a form of contempt for the people of Quebec.
Will that change?
What’s even more surprising about this whole story is that the CAQ is still popular with the electorate. It may even be a reminder (on a smaller scale) of Trump’s popularity despite all his allegations. But how is that to be explained?
People often tend to confuse confidence with competence. A study in psychology has shown that a member of the upper management team will give more credit to someone who is confident and not fully competent than to someone who is fully qualified but lacks confidence. “It seems that more incompetent leaders are consistently more arrogant and risk-taking than more competent leaders.”
Mr. Legault, like many corporate executives, should therefore reevaluate his work team, for while Quebecers may be sensitive to the personality of their executives, they are not necessarily incapable of analyzing their inconsistencies.
Photo courtesy of Frankie Bernèche
Frankie Berneche, PhD Professor of Psychology, Cégep St-Jean-sur-le-Richelieu
