QS makes gender exception for byelection
Québec solidaire set itself a rule that, in cases where byelections were to be held in ridings already won by QS, the next candidate had to be a woman or a non‑binary person. But it has made an exception for the upcoming byelection in Gouin, in central Montreal, which was Gabriel Nadeau‑Dubois’ riding, because Alexandre Boulerice, for some years the lone NDP MP in Quebec, hopes to shift to provincial politics.
Chapleau had a comment on the exception…
Nicholas 15:59 on 2026-02-22 Permalink
Just a slight correction that it’ll be for the upcoming general election, not a by-election, though there will likely be a by-election for Boulerice’s federal seat if he wins provincially, unless we get another general federally.
Kate 16:13 on 2026-02-22 Permalink
Thank you, Nicholas. I had forgotten that Gabriel N‑D wasn’t stepping away immediately, but only at the end of his term.
Joey 21:09 on 2026-02-22 Permalink
This strikes me as the worts possible outcome for QS – if the rule is worth keeping, then apply it even when the alternative would be ‘better’; if it’s only good enough to apply to ridings that don’t matter, it’s not actually a rule, and diminishes both the party’s credibility and the perceived value of its women and non-binary candidates (the implication being that their value comes primarily from their symbolism but that when expertise is called for it’s OK, even necessary, to turn to a man).
By keeping the rule but ignoring it, the message is that QS doesn’t even believe its own rhetoric (Ruba Ghazal: “je suis fière que Québec solidaire soit le chef de file en matière de parité entre les femmes et les hommes en politique”). Isn’t it better to admit that well-intentioned blanket rules that don’t work well in practice should be jettisoned than to pretend that the gap between principles and actions is negligible? If your whole thing is that your party is categorically different than all the others, it’s really, really important to abide by your values and rules.
MarcG 08:20 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
*when winning a seat is called for
Chris 10:43 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
Joey, perhaps they are abiding by their values. The values in question being virtue signalling and pandering to their base.
Kate 17:01 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
It was a silly thing for QS to make a principle of, and they should admit that openly. The right person to choose as a candidate for any given situation is not going to depend on their gender.
CE 18:04 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
I imagine they did it because studies have found that parties often nominate women in ridings they won’t win, whereas men are more often nominated in their safe seats. I seem to remember this coming up with the NDP and later the Liberals where they tried to have a 50/50 split for candidates but it would still be a higher proportion of men in the caucus after the election. Probably QS is thinking that if they’ve won a riding before, they’re more likely to win it again so it’s a way to actually get women/non-binary candidates in the National Assembly.
Ian 22:58 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
Be that as it may, it does very much have the surface appearance of a betrayal of core equity that was supposed to be a pillar of the organization.
I guess by now it’s painfully naive to expect any political party to be conistently working towards progressive policies and not just falling victim to lazy cynicism. That they all expect their earlier supporters to just go along with it because they ostensibly don’t suck complete total ass as the other parties. Or at least not as much.
It’s also pretty crappy of Boulerice to ditch the NDP in their hour of need. He would still get that sweet federal pension, too. A real man of integrity, there.
Tim S. 23:49 on 2026-02-23 Permalink
He does seem to be giving himself until the NDP leadership is decided to make a final decision. I’d be very curious to see which candidates would make him most likely to leave/stay.
As for abandoning the NDP in its hour of need, he worked incredibly hard to show the flag during the Jagmeet Singh era – not the easiest leader to sell in Quebec. I don’t blame him for not wanting to carry the can for a new unilingual leader. He’s done his shift.
Kate 10:12 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Boulerice has not yet decided, as Tim S. says, although having it noised about like this is almost a declaration.
Joey 10:29 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Ian, it’s getting to be a pretty long hour of need for the NDP. Without Boulerice, there’s basically no more QS, so I can see the appeal (though again, if you’re going to break the rules to recruit a star candidate, promising to never do it again, as Ghazal did, is hollow, you’re just a regular old political party now). I’m not sure that however many more years of extreme backbench Ottaw life Boulerice should be expected to shoulder when there’s the chance to do it in Quebec City for a few years LOL. Actually he’d be a great Projet Montreal leader…
I suspect the effect will be small, but Boulerice’s candidacy could change the dynamic in other close races where the PQ will be just slightly ahead…
Kate 15:47 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
I wish Quebec could have a provincial party that was on the left but not automatically devoted to Quebec separation.
There is simply no party I want to vote for in October; I’ve been giving my vote to QS for some years because they’re never going to come to power and because the local MNA, Andres Fontecilla, seems like a decent guy, but I don’t know whether they have any future. Fontecilla may get back in because he’s well liked, but the QS caucus seems likely to shrink.
For the first time I’m considering destroying my ballot. Or – radically – not voting at all.
Tom 15:53 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
For what it is worth, I discovered recently that GNP’s office and Boulerice’s office are next door neighbors. Possibly a discussion between the two of them was had on the elevator, Or someone decided that moving expenses were too high.
Ian 16:41 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Since QS revealed themselves to be ethnonationalists I have no intention of voting for them, and unless Chucky Billions turns out not to be a pick-me to the ethnonationalists like Anglade I too am at a loss.
My nugget of optimism is that another referendum might bring down housing prices when people flee again. I just hope there’s enough cowards left to have the desired effect haha