He only just announced his intention to seek the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party last month, but if former federal cabinet minister Pablo Rodriguez were to lead the PLQ, the party could be a serious contender in the next provincial election in 2026.
A recent Leger poll shows that with Rodriguez in the top job, the Quebec Liberals would be first in voting intentions.
“So now, why Mr. Rodriguez? Well, he’s an outspoken person who’s relatively known, but not very well known in Quebec,” said Karim Boulos, a political analyst.
“It’s an anything but Legault sentiment right now in Quebec. Mr. Legault’s numbers are down. We saw it with Pierre Saint-Pierre-Plamondon’s numbers on the rise in the recent poll as early or as late as the spring. We saw the PQ would have won the election. Okay, so it’s not so much a Mr. Rodriguez vote per se as it is a let’s remove Mr. Legault.
Although a PLQ led by Rodriguez would lead in voting intentions, if an election were held today, the Parti Québécois would form the next government – according to the Leger poll.
But, the needle would shift the survey shows with Rodriguez at the helm.
Rodriguez would garner 28 per cent of voting intentions, compared to 26 per cent for the Parti Québécois, with the CAQ would be close behind.
“And I’m sure he’ll do well, but we just simply don’t know him,” said one Montrealer CityNews spoke to.
PLQ members will choose a new leader in June 2025.
“Mr. Rodriguez brings a lot of federal understanding and I think that one of the things that’s happening right now with the Bloc Québécois, for example, at a federal level is the Quebec, put Quebec first, let’s make sure Quebec has a voice in the House of Commons. He can come in saying, you know, I’ve been to Ottawa, I’ve been in Ottawa for decades and let me tell you how Ottawa works,” said Boulos.