Quebec appears poised to elect a separatist government for the first time in more than a decade, even though most of the province has little interest in a promised vote on independence.
asserted
most → poise → independence
The Parti Québécois, polls show, will likely take the reins of power from the governing Coalition Avenir Québec on Monday after a lacklustre campaign in which voters expressed a desire for change but little enthusiasm for any of their options.
asserted
voters → show → options
A victory for the PQ would give new life to a decades-old debate over sovereignty that took a back seat during the CAQ’s eight years in power.
asserted
that → give → power
Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has promised to hold a referendum on independence within a first mandate, though not before U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the White House in 2029.
asserted
Trump → promise → 2029
The separatist party could claim a majority of the 127 seats in the province’s National Assembly despite the fact that support for the PQ – and for sovereignty – has not climbed above 30 per cent during the campaign.
uncertain
support → claim → campaign
The CAQ, meanwhile, is lagging in polling, with forecasters suggesting the party could find itself with few, if any seats.
uncertain
party → lag → seats
After a six-week campaign in which none of the five viable parties managed to capture the imagination of voters, the Parti Québécois stands to win because the alternatives appeared to be even less inspiring.
asserted
alternatives → manage → voters
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon’s pitch – three years of good government followed by a referendum once Mr. Trump leaves office – has not rallied any new support.
asserted
Trump → follow → support
The Coalition Avenir Québec, under new Leader Christine Fréchette, briefly benefited from a Trump bump when Canada-U.S. trade talks broke down and Prime Minister Mark Carney – enduringly popular in the province – unveiled a series of funding announcements alongside the Premier.
asserted
Carney → benefit → Premier
She tried to make the campaign about the trade war and called the U.S. President her main adversary.
asserted
campaign → try → President
But Quebeckers quickly turned the page, seemingly persuaded by rival parties who argued that Ms. Fréchette was not at the table in tariff negotiations and could not influence their outcome.
uncertain
Fréchette → turn → outcome
The perception that she was not consulted on Mr. Carney’s countertariffs, some of which hurt Quebec businesses, further undermined her standing on the issue.
asserted
some → consult → issue
An attempt in the late stages of the campaign to warn of the potential for U.S. interference in the election, based on a blog post from a right-wing think tank proposing American funding for sovereigntists in Canada, backfired.
asserted
attempt → warn → Canada
The most full-throated federalist party, the Quebec Liberals, struggled to find their voice under new leader Charles Milliard until late in the campaign, when the CAQ’s collapse positioned them as the most plausible alternative to the separatist PQ.
asserted
collapse → struggle → PQ
They will likely remain the Official Opposition, a role they have occupied since 2018.
asserted
they → remain → 2018
The election revealed a province preoccupied by the cost of living, homelessness, crumbling infrastructure, immigration and emergency-room waiting times, but unsure of how to fix any of it.
asserted
election → reveal → it
The existential questions of Mr. Trump’s aggression and independence from Canada largely failed to become defining issues.
asserted
questions → fail → Canada
The big questions of the future received little attention.
asserted
questions → receive → attention
The dangers and possibilities of artificial intelligence were barely discussed until Friday, when it emerged that Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime had used AI to write his latest book.
asserted
Duhaime → discuss → book
The other parties mocked him, while Mr. Duhaime countered that it was “a tool like any other.”
asserted
it → mock → other
Perhaps the most ambitious policy agendas were put forward by the two parties who were never in the running to form government – the left-wing Québec solidaire (QS), which proposed publicly owned grocery stores and raising taxes on the very rich, and the Conservatives, who campaigned on sweeping tax cuts and easier access to private health care.
Despite a well-liked co-leader in Ruba Ghazal, QS has remained marginal in the campaign and is working to hold on to its handful of seats.
asserted
QS → put → seats
But Mr. Duhaime’s promises to rein in government spending have struck a chord with voters who feel the CAQ government has played fast and loose with their money.
asserted
government → rein → money
For the first time, his party will likely win several seats in the National Assembly and become a real political force.
asserted
party → win → Assembly
Quebec appears to have little appetite for grand projects, preferring help with making ends meet.
asserted
ends → appear → help
One of the campaign’s most popular ideas – proposed by the Conservatives and péquistes alike – was to abolish the provincial sales tax on used goods.
asserted
One → propose → goods
A majority of the five parties proposed substantial cuts to the number of newcomers coming in and the size of the public-sector work force, differing only on how many thousands.
asserted
majority → propose → force
The well-known Montreal businessman Andrew Lutfy roughly captured the state of Quebec’s self-image on Friday when he declared that the province had become “uninvestable” because of excess red tape and needed 6-per-cent annual growth to fix its hospitals, schools and roads.
asserted
province → know → hospitals
But with the province legally required to balance its budget by the end of the decade, the three main parties had little room to propose big ideas, said political analyst Raphaël Melançon.
asserted
Melançon → require → ideas
“Basically, what we are selling is the status quo,” he said.
asserted
he → sell → what
“We’re just going to keep governing the province as it is.”
asserted
it → go → province
The Aporia
