Alexandre Leduc becomes parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire

The member for Sherbrooke, Christine Labrie, gives up her place as parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire (QS). It is his colleague from Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Alexandre Leduc, who will take his place. And the menu for his first weeks at the post is already busy.

Recognition of QS as a parliamentary group, political strategies, oath to the king: the elected representative, who describes himself as « a little bit geek “, will be entitled to a baptism of fire in the coming days. But he does not hesitate for a second when asked which file will be his number one priority at the start of the session: “Negotiate a good agreement. »

“Unfortunately, the somewhat archaic rules of Parliament mean that you have to have 12 deputies or 20% of the vote to be an automatically recognized parliamentary group,” he underlines. At 11 seats and 15% of the vote, QS does not reach this target, which allows political parties to have larger budgets and speaking time. Neither does the Parti Québécois (PQ).

But everything is possible within the framework of such talks: the two parties had been recognized in the last legislature despite the size of their deputations.

Only the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ) – with its 21 seats – automatically obtained the status of parliamentary opposition group this fall. So far, its leader, Dominique Anglade, refuses to open the door to recognition of the other two parties, although Prime Minister François Legault has done so.

« Me, my number one priority is to prepare for this negotiation, » noted Mr. Leduc in an interview. The former unionist expects to find a tough PLQ at the table, but remains “fully confident”: he believes that QS will be granted official parliamentary group status. « It’s still a fairly classic position […] pump up the muscles and take firmer postures. So me, it doesn’t surprise me to hear that [de M^meAnglade]. There is even something quite normal in the game. »

Cooperation and strategy

Will QS support the PQ — which won only three seats on October 3 — in its quest for parliamentary recognition? « I’m careful not to make negotiations in the public square, » said Mr. Leduc, while adding that « we can’t end up in a scenario where the PQ finds itself with three independents. » “We, when we experienced it, it was not a happy scenario, he relates. It is certain that we have sympathy. »

In terms of parliamentary strategy, Mr. Leduc affirms that he is not “in a logic of obstruction”. QS had however planned to do so before the pandemic with its “Ultimatum 2020”, which provided for the multiplication of gestures of obstruction if the Coalition avenir Québec did not take certain climatic gestures. “We want things to move forward,” said the supportive MP today, who is in his second term.

Became parliamentary leader in 2021, Christine Labrie asked the co-spokespersons of QS to give up her seat at the end of the last legislature, in June. “I realized that the meaning of my work, I find it more in local and national files. I preferred to devote myself to that, ”she says. His position in the future solidarity shadow cabinet has yet to be determined.

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