Quebecers Speak; will Leaders Listen?

The PQ is fond of telling us about how they represent the "will" of the people. That will-o-meter must be busted real good because the will of Quebec is a little more elusive than they care to admit.

Our will and their wish are two different things. Tonight's Provincial election result was interesting indeed. It was as tight as predicted with the popular vote being split roughly a third for the three major players: Liberals, Parti Quebecois and Action Democratique. All told, the Liberals (as we speak hold about 46 seats, ADQ 42 and PQ 37) which translates into a minority government.

First, how can the PQ possibly spin this positively? They can't. They are rudderless. Their ideas are hopelessly out of touch with the realities of contemporary and urban Quebec society. Their apologists too are out of excuses. That Green Sovereignty marketing ploy was not only ineffective but sophomoric as well. Mr. Andre Boisclair spoke, as people chanted "un pays!, un pays!, the usual "we have a dream" rhetoric but is anyone truly listening? They lost by a few thousand votes in their minds. True. But they lost and this was not a positive result. Not even close. They lost nine seats and 4% of the popular vote.

Just a side note, the PQ claim they are democratic but they have a funny way of showing it. In the referendum in 1995, they managed to get pro-Canada votes tossed. This time, it was alleged that they obstructed advanced polls from being open in the Sherbrooke riding of Jean Charest.

Of the two traditional political parties in the Province, it is the Liberals who get the benefit of the doubt from the wrath of the people. The message was clear: shape and wake up, deadbeats. Just to make sure they make themselves heard the people made Liberal leader Jean Charest sweat like a minion for his seat. His leadership is now in question.

The clear winner is the ADQ. They gained a whopping 38 seats. ADQ leader Mario Dumont is officially Quebec's rock'n roll rebel. Once an obscure third party, the ADQ and its leader Mario Dumont have stolen the spot light and now will have to play a sharper, more refined game. I'm sure many people thought that they would do well but remain the third party. We under estimated just how fed up Quebecers are. I myself debated long and hard but opted to play a wait and see approach. There are many things I like about the ADQ and if they perform well they will get my vote next time. The Liberals should not sit on their asses and assume they will get votes back next time. Some are crediting Prime Minister Stephen Harper's strong conservative penetration into the Quebec landscape for the ADQ breakthrough.

That's two minority governments Canadians and Quebecers have voted for. They are saying we weren't quite ready for Stephen Harper at the Federal level and provincially Mario Dumont but fail us once again and we will not hesitate to give them full power. They say America is divided. In many ways, Canada is too.

There is not only a clash of values between urban and rural centers, but a generational one as well. The new breed of Quebecers are not easily connecting to the platforms and ideas that come from the Liberals and PQ anymore. This was a protest vote in many ways and the people have given Dumont Official Opposition status to prove himself.

Who says Canadian politics is boring? Oh yeah, me. In terms of issues and debates yes, Canadian politics is not dynamic. At the voting level, the story is different. Remember this is a society that eradicated the Conservative Party in the early 90s. Nothing like its annihilation had been seen in modern Western political culture.

It's all in how one interprets their victory and defeats. Down south, the Democrats learned little. Here, the Liberals still talk and act cocky with Harper in power. Does it mean our leaders are not listening? Will the Quebec Liberals react like their Federal counterparts? Notably with a shrug and not make any real effort to change?

One last note. This may sound petty but it would be nice for the leaders to give part of their speeches in English. This is not 1955 anymore. It's a simple matter of respect. If Harper can speak and give a speech in French so can our leaders. The Liberals are miles ahead on this front.
We'll see. All I know is that I am proud of Quebec today. They were not afraid and they sent a message.