Quebec independence movement on hold after once-in-a-century election
Tue Mar 27, 1:57 AM
By Les Perreaux
MONTREAL (CP) - Quebecers set aside the dream of independence Monday in a once-in-a-century election that pushed the province to the right after promises of private health care and a tougher approach to minorities.
While the Liberals won a slim minority, it was the Action democratique du Quebec's liftoff on a wave of populist anger that turned Quebec's legislature rightward. Canadians will get a referendum reprieve but the upheaval facing Jean Charest's government means nothing is certain a year or two down the road.
"Today Quebecers delivered a judgment, a severe one, and the Liberal party and I will have to learn lessons from it," Charest told his supporters in Sherbrooke, Que.
"This new assembly will test our political maturity and sense of duty. Quebecers decided to write a page of history tonight and put their politicians to the test. I accept this challenge."
With the 125 ridings settled, the Liberals had 48 seats, the ADQ 41 and the PQ 36, giving Quebec its first minority government since the 1870s.
The race for the popular vote was just as tight with the Liberals at 33 per cent, the ADQ at 31 per cent and the PQ at 28 per cent.
Mario Dumont's ADQ surged to second place in one of the biggest surprises in modern Quebec politics after he repeatedly told voters in the campaign he wanted the province to be more autonomous within Canada.
Dumont walked a fine constitutional line and was able to attract support from disenchanted federalists and sovereigntists alike.
The ADQ leader also struck a vein of discontent when he said the province should stop bending over backwards to accommodate minorities.
The party's strong performance pushed the separatist Parti Quebecois into third place
"This is a cry from the heart from the people that we heard tonight," Dumont told supporters at his campaign rally in Riviere-du-Loup.
"Quebec is entering the 21st century in terms of politics. This is a victory for all middle-class Quebecers.
"We now have a rendez-vous for the next step."
That next step may include Dumont's promise to fight for autonomy - a position that was mocked as weak and unrealistic by federalists and separatists alike.
Dumont said autonomy will allow Quebec to assert itself without separating.
"Our autonomist path is the modern response to what we have become in 2007," Dumont said.
"The autonomist path is above all faithfulness to Quebec."
In Montreal, PQ supporters chanted "We want a country, we want a country" as crestfallen Leader Andre Boisclair climbed on stage at party headquarters, pointing out the party didn't miss by much.
"Just a few seats separate us from power, a couple of thousand votes," Boisclair told the cheering crowd.
"Tonight it is democracy that has spoken."
Boisclair said the sovereigntist fire was a bit subdued Monday night.
"These flames haven't been extinguished tonight, but they aren't burning as brightly," he said.
The result left the PQ and the sovereignty movement facing major questions. Under Boisclair, the party fell to its lowest level of popular support in decades and its smallest number of seats since 1989.
The PQ's failure to win a majority means there will be no referendum - at least until the Liberal government falls and another election is held.
The Liberals will count on the ADQ opposition for support in leading the province in Quebec's first minority government since 1878.
Despite Charest's win, Quebecers gave a thumbs-down to four years of Liberal majority rule. Charest was the first premier to fail to win a second majority mandate in 40 years but was elected in his Sherbrooke riding after trailing much of the evening.
Charest noted the deep division in Quebec society in his sombre victory speech.
"Tonight you have to say with the vote split that Quebec is also divided," Charest said.
"It's up to the elected members of the Quebec people to restore the unity of our citizens."
Dumont's party entered the campaign with five seats but surpassed even its wildest expectations.
With both the Liberals and PQ at their lowest levels of support in decades, both Boisclair and Charest were expected to face questions about their leadership.
Dumont will only face questions about the strength of his newly elected members of the legislature, most of whom are completely unknown with little or no political experience.
Overwhelmed ADQ supporters stood in disbelief and waved signs saying, "It's time for action" as results poured in to Dumont's headquarters in Riviere-du-Loup.
They chanted "Mario, Mario."
"It was the ADQ that stimulated the election's issues, and set the tone of the campaign," Gregoire Blais, a party organizer, said amid the cheers and chants.
"Without the ADQ, it would have been a boring campaign."
Stunned and sombre Liberal faithful gathered in Charest's Sherbrooke riding.
"It's surprising," said Huguette Levesque at Liberal headquarters at a hotel convention centre.
"But... there are people who were unsatisfied and they wanted something new."
Dumont made unexpected gains in several areas of the province, taking Liberal and PQ seats and several surprise seats in Montreal suburbs.
Instead of being stuck in the 40-year-old debate over Quebec's national destiny, Dumont found middle ground with his vague stand for Quebec autonomy within Canada.
Even without the immediate threat of Quebec separation, the election has consequences for the rest of Canada. The vote could determine whether Prime Minister Stephen Harper calls a federal election this spring.
The election night disappointment for sovereigntists might convince Harper to call a federal election soon and go for more seats at the expense of the Bloc Quebecois.
The 33-day campaign began with Charest comfortably atop the polls but quickly turned into an exciting three-way race that left observers afraid to guess the outcome.
Dumont saw his support rise from the ashes during the campaign thanks in part to a conservative platform that earned him admirers in rural Quebec. His stance that Quebec does too much to accommodate its religious minorities played especially well outside of Montreal.
In the dying days of the election run, Harper tossed a Hail Mary pass to Charest in billions of dollars in transfers to Quebec. Charest immediately handed off a $700-million promise of income tax cuts, an offering that reminded voters of billions in tax reductions he failed to deliver in his last mandate.
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