Premier Francois Legault is clarifying remarks he made earlier in the day when he said Quebec didn’t face political violence similar to the attempted assassination over the weekend of former president Donald Trump.
Legault’s comments had the leader of the Parti Quebecois inviting the premier to brush up on his history.
Paul St-Pierre Plamondon noted that PQ leaders have twice been the targets of attacks — in 1984 and most recently during the 2012 provincial election night.
Speaking to reporters at the Council of the Federation meeting in Halifax, Legault said what happened over the weekend is worrying for democracy in the U.S., but that kind of violence against politicians “doesn’t happen in Quebec.”
The premier emerged not long after to calm the tempest, telling reporters that of course he remembered 2012 well, but emphasized his comments were meant to highlight that there was no polarization or radicalization in Quebec.
Parti Quebecois leader Pauline Marois is removed from the stage by SQ officers as she speaks to supporters in Montreal, Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2012 following her election win. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes)
In 2012, a gunman attacked a PQ rally in Montreal, killing a lighting technician and trying to enter a venue where then-PQ leader Pauline Marois was giving a victory speech.
And in 1984, a gunman burst into the legislature with the aim of killing then-premier Rene Levesque and other members of the PQ. He killed three people and wounded 13 others.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 15, 2024.