Conservative Party of Quebec Parti conservateur du Québec | |
---|---|
Abbreviation | CPQ (English) PCQ (French) |
Leader | Ăric Duhaime |
President | Donald Gagnon |
Founder(s) |
Serge Fontaine Bertrand Goulet |
Founded | 25 March 2009 |
Headquarters | 400-1020 Bouvier Road Quebec City, Quebec G2K 0K9 |
Membership (April 17, 2022) | 57,346 [1] |
Ideology | |
Political position | Centre-right to right-wing |
Seats in the National Assembly | 0 / 125 |
Website | |
www | |
The Conservative Party of Quebec (CPQ; French: Parti conservateur du QuĂ©bec (PCQ)) is a provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. It was authorized on 25 March 2009 by the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec. [2] The CPQ has gradually run more candidates in successive elections, with 27 in the 2012 general election and 125 (all seats contested) in 2022. The party has not won a seat in the National Assembly of Quebec; however, under leader Ăric Duhaime the CPQ won about 12.9% of the popular vote in the 2022 election, a major increase from prior elections. Previously on June 18, 2021 Claire Samson crossed the floor to join the party after having won election in 2018 as a candidate of the governing Coalition Avenir QuĂ©bec (CAQ).
For the 2014 provincial election, the party used the name "Ăquipe Adrien Pouliot â Parti conservateur du QuĂ©bec" (English: Team Adrien Pouliot â Conservative Party of Quebec). For the 2022 provincial election, the party used the name "Parti conservateur du QuĂ©bec â Ăquipe Ăric Duhaime" (English: Conservative Party of Quebec â Team Ăric Duhaime).
This article is part of a series on |
Conservatism in Canada |
---|
In 2009, former Union Nationale Members of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNAs) Serge Fontaine and Bertrand Goulet announced the formation of a new Conservative Party of Quebec. [3]
In November 2009, Fontaine offered Ăric Caire, who at the time sat with the Action dĂ©mocratique du QuĂ©bec (ADQ), the opportunity to join the party and become its leader, with the goal of attracting disaffected ADQ supporters. This did not materialize and Caire sat as an independent [4] before joining the Coalition Avenir QuĂ©bec in 2011.
In November 2011, party leader Fontaine left the Conservative Party to join the CAQ led by François Legault. [5]
In January 2012, the party, which still existed on paper, was taken over by the former federal Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for the Louis-HĂ©bert riding, Luc Harvey, who became its leader.
In contrast to the newly formed CAQ, which is neutral on the sovereignty issue, Harvey said the Conservatives will be federalist, promote a social conservative agenda and a flat tax. [6]
In March 2012, the party's website announced that former Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) MNAs Monique Roy Verville and Albert De Martin would run for the party in the upcoming election. [7]
On 10 September 2012, it was announced that Harvey was stepping down as party leader. [8] De Martin was named interim leader on 21 September. [9]
In December 2012, De Martin launched a leadership election. As a result, two contenders, Daniel Brisson and Adrien D. Pouliot, declared their intention to run.
In mid-February 2013, Brisson withdrew from the leadership election, [10] leaving Pouliot as the sole candidate.
Pouliot was acclaimed the new leader on 23 February 2013 and immediately put a new constitution forward for the members present at its convention. It was immediately ratified by all the members and refocused the stance of the party to more of a centre-right value system. Later that day, he took a stance against the proposed Parti Québécois laws 14 and 20. [11]
In the 2014 provincial election, the party nominated 60 candidates, who won 16,429 votes, 0.4 percent of the total votes cast in the province. [12] In the 2018 election, these numbers increased to 101 nominated candidates winning 59,055 votes, or 1.5 percent of the total votes. [13]
On 16 October 2020, Adrien Pouliot announced he would be resigning as leader of the party to pursue further business ventures, but opted to stay on until a new leader was elected in the 2021 leadership election, which was won by columnist Ăric Duhaime who handily defeated repeat candidate Brisson in a two-way contest. [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]
On 18 June 2021, Claire Samson became the first member of the modern Conservative Party of Quebec to sit in the Quebec legislature. [a] [19] This followed her expulsion from the CAQ three days prior, after she donated $100 to the Conservative Party of Quebec. [20]
The Conservative Party of Quebec's executive consists of its leader, its president, its secretary-general, an official agent, an executive director, committee chairs, and regional vice-presidents. [21]
Leader | Term start | Term end | Constituency | Notes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | Serge Fontaine | 25 March 2009 | November 2011 | Nicolet-Yamaska | Inaugural leader, later defected to the Coalition Avenir Québec. | |
â | Vacant | November 2011 | 18 January 2012 | N/A | The position of leader was left vacant from November 2011 to January 2012. No interim leader was appointed. | |
2nd | Luc Harvey | 18 January 2012 | 11 September 2012 | LĂ©vis | Previously served as the federal MP for Louis-HĂ©bert. Resigned shortly after the 2012 election. | |
â | Albert De Martin | 21 September 2012 | 23 February 2013 | Huntingdon | Interim leader. | |
3rd | Adrien D. Pouliot | 23 February 2013 | 17 April 2021 | Chauveau | Longest serving leader. Resigned to pursue further business ventures. | |
4th | Ăric Duhaime | 17 April 2021 | Incumbent |
Deux-Montagnes, later Chauveau |
Led party to 12.9% of the popular vote in the 2022 general election from 1.5% in 2018. |
Election | Leader | Seats contested | Seats won | +/- | Votes | % | Rank | Status/Gov. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | Luc Harvey | 27 / 125
|
0 / 125
|
7,652 | 0.2% | 7th | Extra-parliamentary | |
2014 | Adrien D. Pouliot | 60 / 125
|
0 / 125
|
16,429 | 0.4% | 7th | Extra-parliamentary | |
2018 | 101 / 125
|
0 / 125
|
59,053 | 1.5% | 6th | Extra-parliamentary | ||
2022 | Ăric Duhaime | 125 / 125
|
0 / 125
|
530,804 | 12.9% | 5th | Extra-parliamentary |