The race for the Quebec Liberal leadership got off to a quick start Monday with frontrunner Pablo Rodriguez having to defend his Quebec credentials after a supporter of his opponent Charles Milliard said his federal Liberal background will hinder the provincial party in the regions.
Recommended Videos
But Rodriguez had his own ace up his sleeve, welcoming former opponent Frédéric Beauchemin into his campaign fold. Only in November Beauchemin, the MNA for Marguerite-Bourgeoys, was critical of Rodiguez. Rodiguez is still sitting as a federal Liberal MP.
“I’m coming back home,” Rodriguez said, launching his campaign in a downtown Montreal hotel in reference to his past in the Quebec Liberal youth wing. “I’m telling people come back home.
“And I grew up in Sherbrooke. I’ve been travelling across Quebec. I was the Quebec lieutenant. I love Quebec. I came back because of that. I’m my own person. I make my own decisions.”
Rodriguez stressed that during his time as a Trudeau cabinet minister, he was a good soldier and stuck to the government’s agenda. Since then, he said, he has spoken freely, voting against such things as the Trudeau government’s GST tax holiday and opposing Ottawa’s $250 cheques for Canadians.
Rodriguez was responding to a dart tossed at him earlier in the morning by new Milliard supporter and former finance minister Raymond Bachand. At a news conference in Old Montreal kicking off the Milliard campaign, Bachand charged into Rodriguez.
“The Quebec Liberal Party in the regions does not exist,” Bachand said, standing beside Milliard. “It is very weak. Quebecers in the regions are getting ready to vote massively for the Bloc (Québécois) or the Conservatives. And the Liberal Party of Quebec wants to elect someone as leader who is the right-hand man of the Canadian government for 10 years?
“I don’t understand. Putting aside the qualities of the man because he is a person of quality (Rodriguez), but it’s not the right circumstances.”
Bachand went on to paise Milliard, a pharmacist and former president of Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec, who announced in August he would seek the leadership. The job has been vacant since the resignation of Dominique Anglade.
LaFontaine MNA Marc Tanguay has been acting as interim leader.
Bachand said he believes Milliard is the best candidate to get Quebec back to balanced books without draconian austerity measures.
The comments set the scene for a rough-and-tumble 150-day campaign leading to the actual leadership vote in June. With Beauchemin’s decision Friday to pull out and back Rodriguez, four candidates are in the running.
On Monday, the first official day of the race, Milliard showed up at Liberal headquarters to pick up his nomination papers. He was followed a short while later by former Matane lawyer and fiscal expert Marc Bélanger.
Rodriguez will pick up his papers later Monday.
The fourth candidate in the race, former Montreal mayor Denis Coderre, has opted to do his official launch Friday in Quebec City to show he wants to represent Liberals who live outside Montreal.
To date, no female candidates have come forward, but there is time for one to emerge. The deadline to file a candidacy is in April.
In order to run, candidates have to collect 750 signatures from members in 70 ridings and 12 different regions. At least 350 of the 750 signatures have to be from new members.
Candidate have to put up a non-refundable fee of $40,000 to run. Each candidate is limited to spending a maximum of $400,000.