CAQ chooses Christine Fréchette as next party leader, Quebec’s next premier

The Coalition Avenir Québec has chosen former minister Christine Fréchette to be its next leader, anointing her the province’s next premier as the governing party faces possible annihilation in a provincial election later this year.

Ms. Fréchette is promising to breathe new life into a party that has collapsed in the polls in recent years. She will replace François Legault, who announced his resignation as CAQ leader and premier in January after seven and a half years in power.

The former economy minister claimed nearly 58 per cent of the vote at a leadership convention in Drummondville, Que. on Sunday, defeating her only rival, longtime minister Bernard Drainville. She will attempt to resurrect the party with just months to go before a provincial election scheduled for October.

“Quebeckers, you want change, but not just any kind of change. No improvisation, no divisive promises,” Ms. Fréchette said shortly before the results were announced. “You want change that brings order, improves your lives, and makes them simpler.”

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Ms. Fréchette, a one-time Parti Québécois staffer, was first elected with the CAQ in 2022. She was named economy minister in 2024, and ran for the leadership on a promise to bolster Quebec’s economy in a time of uncertainty. She will be Quebec’s second female premier, after former PQ premier Pauline Marois, who served from 2012 to 2014.

Mr. Legault co-founded the Coalition Avenir Québec in 2011 as a nationalist party that would not endorse a referendum on independence, and has been its only leader to date. When he led the party in 2018 to form the first of two majority governments, he said Quebeckers had set aside the debate on sovereignty that had dominated the province’s politics for 50 years.

“Remember that we have changed Quebec,” Mr. Legault said in a speech on Sunday. “Be proud of what we have done.”

Still, this year’s election looks to be another battle between the Parti Québécois and the provincial Liberals, and will likely be dominated by the PQ’s promise to hold a third referendum on independence in a first mandate. Poll aggregator Qc125.com shows the CAQ could lose every one of its 80 seats if an election were held today.

On Saturday, a new Léger poll found Ms. Fréchette could slightly boost her party’s fortunes in the next provincial election. The survey found that 18 per cent of respondents said they would vote for the CAQ with Ms. Fréchette as leader, up from 13 per cent under Mr. Legault. But the party still polled far behind the PQ and the Liberals.

The survey polled 1,036 Quebeckers between April 2 and April 6, and cannot be assigned a margin of error as participants were recruited from an online panel.

Members of the CAQ are realistic about what is possible for the party in the next election, said political analyst Raphaël Melançon. Retaining the 12 seats that would give them official party status in Quebec’s National Assembly would be a victory, he said.

“They are most of all looking for someone who will make sure that it’s not a total collapse or total annihilation,” said Mr. Melançon. “Beyond that would be really fantasizing more than anything.”

Ms. Fréchette appeared to have a strong lead over Mr. Drainville from the start of the campaign, attracting more endorsements from ministers and backbenchers. Mr. Drainville is more closely linked to the party’s identity policies, including tighter rules on secularism.

“I think the major thing that she can bring to the party is a breath of fresh air,” Mr. Melançon said.