2014 Quebec general election
The 2014 Quebec general election was held on April 7, 2014 to elect members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The incumbent Parti Québécois which had won a minority government in 2012 was defeated by the Quebec Liberal Party under Philippe Couillard who won a majority government of 70 seats, while the incumbent Parti Québécois finished second with 30 seats, becoming the first single-term government since Jean-Jacques Bertrand's Union Nationale government was defeated in 1970. Pauline Marois electoral defeat marked the shortest stay of any Quebec provincial government since the Canadian Confederation. It marked the lowest seat total for the Parti Québécois since 1989 and its smallest share of the popular vote since its inaugural run in 1970, as Premier Pauline Marois lost her own riding. The Coalition Avenir Québec under François Legault made minor gains in terms of seats despite receiving a smaller share of the popular vote than in the previous election. Québec solidaire won an additional seat, though co-spokesperson Andrés Fontecilla failed to win his riding. This election saw the return of the Liberals to power 2 years after their defeat in 2012. To date this is the last election where the Liberal Party won a majority of seats in the Quebec Assembly.
Summary
At the outset of the campaign, the Parti Québécois had a modest lead in the polls and appeared to have a realistic prospect of winning a majority government. However, the party's support rapidly collapsed after the party announced Pierre Karl Péladeau, the president and CEO of media conglomerate Quebecor, as a star candidate. Péladeau's conservative and anti-union business background was widely criticized as being at odds with the party's social democratic history; and his outspoken support for a third referendum on Quebec sovereignty quickly sidelined the issues — including the Charter of Quebec Values and the corruption allegations against the Liberals, the latter of which had contributed to the defeat of Jean Charest's government in the 2012 election — which the party had identified as its primary campaign themes, alienating many voters who had little desire to revive the sovereignty issue.In March 2014, Premier Pauline Marois was accused of antisemitism by The Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs surrounding the statements made by party member Louise Mailloux. Mailloux had written statements equating the Jewish practice of circumcision to rape and claimed that halal and kosher food prices were kept high to fund religious activities abroad. She wrote that the money went to: “For the Jews, to finance Israel’s colonization in Palestinian territories? And for Muslims, to fund the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamists who want to impose Islam worldwide?” Marois defended Mailloux, denying antisemitism within the party and stated that she had "very good relations with the leaders of this community and the leaders of all the different communities in Quebec.” CIJA claimed Marois's apology and statements were inadequate and "meaningless excuses" with CIJA Quebec vice-president, Luciano Del Negro, stating: "She alleges a misunderstanding and refuses to basically recognize her views are not only offensive, but anti-Semitic in nature.”
Timeline (2012-2014)
Seat changes
Changes of party leaders
Other developments
Incumbent MNAs who did not run for re-election
Opinion polls
| Polling firm | Last date of polling | Link | PQ | QLP | CAQ | QS | ON | GPQ | Other |
| Election results | 25.38 | 41.52 | 23.05 | 7.63 | 0.73 | 0.55 | 1.14 | ||
| Angus Reid | 27 | 39 | 25 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Segma Recherche | 25.7 | 41.5 | 22.0 | 8.9 | 1.9 | ||||
| Forum Research | 24 | 44 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Léger Marketing | 29 | 38 | 23 | 9 | 1 | 1 | |||
| EKOS | 27.0 | 39.8 | 21.1 | 9.4 | 2.8 | ||||
| Ipsos Reid | 28 | 40 | 18 | 12 | 0 | 2 | |||
| Forum Research | 29 | 41 | 19 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Léger Marketing | 33 | 40 | 15 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Forum Research | 32 | 45 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Ipsos Reid | 33 | 40 | 14 | 9 | 2 | 2 | |||
| CROP | 36 | 39 | 13 | 10 | 1 | 1 | |||
| Léger Marketing | 37 | 37 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| CROP | 36 | 36 | 17 | 8 | 1 | 2 | |||
| Forum Research | 38 | 40 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Léger Marketing | 37 | 35 | 15 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 2012 Election | 31.95 | 31.20 | 27.05 | 6.03 | 1.89 | 0.99 | 0.89 |
Results among "likely voters"
Pre-campaign period
Media endorsements
Parti Québécois- Le Devoir
- La Presse
- ''Montreal Gazette''
List of candidates
[Bas-Saint-Laurent] and [Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine]
1138045.70%
10580
42.20%
1061
4.26%
1540
6.18%
130
0.52%
283
1.14%
6649
19.12%
17348
49.88%
8093
23.27%
1910
5.49%
158
0.45%
347
1.00%
Gaétan Mercier
272
0.78%
10026
52.03%
6513
33.80%
1192
6.19%
989
5.13%
194
1.01%
255
1.32%
Christian Rioux
99
0.51%
3319
40.17%
4137
50.07%
262
3.17%
499
6.04%
46
0.56%
18025
61.16%
6712
22.77%
3019
10.24%
1511
5.13%
207
0.70%
12028
40.58%
8888
29.99%
3186
10.75%
4851
16.37%
327
1.10%
138
0.47%
Pier-Luc Gagnon
219
0.74%
8378
23.95%
18086
51.69%
5794
16.56%
2129
6.09%
245
0.70%
354
''1.01%''
[Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean] and [Côte-Nord]
1124534.48%
9640
29.56%
5691
17.45%
2105
6.46%
327
1.00%
3601
11.04%
8919
32.13%
11386
41.02%
5240
18.88%
1494
5.38%
285
1.03%
431
1.55%
8910
39.99%
8513
38.21%
2898
13.01%
1502
6.74%
458
2.06%
13487
43.52%
8254
26.63%
7318
23.61%
1608
5.19%
326
1.05%
13159
44.53%
8331
28.19%
5412
18.32%
1872
6.34%
222
0.75%
318
1.08%
Yann Lavoie
235
0.80%
11029
55.00%
4366
21.77%
3152
15.72%
1297
6.47%
207
1.03%
10764
33.33%
17816
55.17%
2239
6.93%
1018
3.15%
218
0.68%
237
''0.73%''
[Capitale-Nationale]
721517.92%
16934
42.07%
13053
32.43%
1936
4.81%
257
0.64%
450
1.12%
315
0.78%
Normand Fournier
40
0.10%
Daniel Lachance
52
0.13%
12201
32.87%
13083
35.24%
9682
26.08%
1539
4.15%
287
0.77%
332
0.89%
5289
12.22%
12940
29.91%
22679
52.41%
1617
3.74%
289
0.67%
455
1.05%
6998
22.40%
11645
37.27%
7431
23.78%
3626
11.60%
782
2.50%
246
0.79%
93
0.30%
Sébastien Dumais
384
1.23%
Claude Moreau
43
0.14%
7824
22.48%
15492
44.50%
7158
20.56%
3151
9.05%
526
1.51%
206
0.59%
389
1.12%
Stéphane Pouleur
66
0.19%
4281
10.07%
14362
33.80%
21386
50.33%
1444
3.40%
274
0.64%
561
1.32%
185
0.44%
6841
18.37%
18327
49.22%
9650
25.92%
1840
4.94%
266
0.71%
310
0.83%
7242
17.11%
17113
40.42%
14323
33.83%
1981
4.68%
255
0.60%
1015
2.40%
407
0.96%
4525
14.67%
12779
41.42%
11720
37.99%
1209
3.92%
227
0.74%
391
1.27%
11376
31.66%
10925
30.40%
5865
16.32%
5495
15.29%
1613
4.21%
198
0.55%
49
0.14%
Sylvain Drolet
127
0.35%
Jean-Luc Savard
385
1.07%
6337
15.03%
18398
43.64%
14535
34.48%
1920
4.55%
400
0.95%
564
''1.34%''