Quebec's separatist Parti Québécois won the province's October 5, 2026 election, taking 59 of 127 National Assembly seats — five short of a majority. Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has pledged an independence referendum during his term, but not before U.S. President Donald Trump leaves office in January 2029.
The Parti Québécois (PQ) won Quebec's provincial election held on Monday, October 5, 2026, according to results reported by Euronews and Al Jazeera. The separatist party, led by Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, took 59 of the 127 seats in the National Assembly — five short of the 64 needed to govern alone, per Wikipedia's tally of the official results.
How the seats and votes split
According to Wikipedia's results compilation, the Liberal Party of Quebec finished second with 40 seats on 24.22% of the vote, the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) took 19 seats with 20.67%, and Québec Solidaire won 9 seats with 12.43%. The PQ led the popular vote with 28.02%, which The Globe and Mail described as the lowest vote share ever recorded by a party forming government in Quebec.
Quebec National Assembly: 2026 vs 2022 results
Party
2026 seats
2022 seats
2026 vote share
Parti Québécois
59
3
28.02%
Liberal Party of Quebec
40
21
24.22%
Conservative Party of Quebec
19
0
20.67%
Québec Solidaire
9
11
12.43%
Coalition Avenir Québec
0
90
not specified
Turnout was 66.89%, with about 4.3 million Quebecers voting — an increase of less than one percentage point from 2022, according to Radio-Canada.
The CAQ's collapse and the Conservatives' breakthrough
The governing Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), which held 90 seats before the vote, lost all of them, a result Wikipedia's entry on the election lists as only the fourth total electoral wipeout of a governing party in Canadian history. CAQ leader Christine Fréchette conceded defeat and, per Radio-Canada, was herself defeated in her own riding of Trois-Rivières by less than two percentage points.
The Conservative Party of Quebec, led by Éric Duhaime, won 19 seats, sweeping ridings in Quebec City and on Montreal's South Shore, according to Journal Métro, which reported Duhaime was elected in the riding of Bellechasse. The Globe and Mail noted it was the first time since 1935 that a Conservative-affiliated candidate had won a seat in the National Assembly, and suggested the party could hold the balance of power in the new legislature.
The referendum pledge and the Trump factor
St-Pierre Plamondon has promised to hold a referendum on Quebec sovereignty during his first mandate, but has said he will wait until Donald Trump leaves the White House in January 2029, according to both Euronews and Al Jazeera. Because the PQ holds a minority government, any bill setting a referendum question would need support from at least one opposition party in the National Assembly.
A political scientist cited by The Globe and Mail warned that pursuing a referendum without a majority could prove a 'dead end,' given the likelihood of opposition resistance. Al Jazeera reported that a McGill University political scientist put current public support for independence at about 30%, which the article described as low by historical standards.
Reaction from Ottawa
Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated the PQ and pledged to work with the incoming government on shared priorities including the impact of U.S. tariffs, job creation and housing, according to Euronews.
Building a stronger Québec is core to our mission of building a stronger Canada.
— Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada
Background: three decades without a referendum
Quebec has held two previous referendums on leaving Canada, in 1980 and 1995, with the 1995 vote decided by a narrow margin, Al Jazeera reported. There has been no further referendum in the three decades since. Euronews notes Quebec has about 9.1 million residents, roughly 80% of whom are French-speaking.
PQ: 59 seats, 28.02% of the vote — forms a minority government, five seats short of a majority.
Liberal Party of Quebec: 40 seats, 24.22% — becomes the official opposition.
Conservative Party of Quebec: 19 seats, 20.67% — first seats in the Assembly since 1935.
Québec Solidaire: 9 seats, 12.43%.
Coalition Avenir Québec: 0 seats — lost all 90 seats it held going into the vote.
Questions
Did the Parti Québécois win a majority government?
No. The PQ won 59 of 127 seats in the National Assembly, five short of the 64 needed for a majority, so it will govern as a minority, according to Wikipedia's results summary and Euronews.
Will Quebec hold another independence referendum?
PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has pledged to hold one during his first mandate but said he will wait until U.S. President Donald Trump leaves office in January 2029, per Euronews and Al Jazeera. As a minority government, the PQ would need opposition support in the Assembly to set a referendum question.
Why did the Coalition Avenir Québec lose every seat?
The CAQ, which had held 90 seats, was wiped out entirely in the 2026 vote — described by sources as only the fourth total electoral collapse of a governing party in Canadian history, though the exact reasons are analysed differently across the cited reports.
How did Prime Minister Mark Carney respond to the result?
Carney congratulated the PQ and said his government would cooperate with Quebec's new administration on tariffs, jobs and housing, stating that 'building a stronger Québec is core to our mission of building a stronger Canada,' according to Euronews.
Who is Éric Duhaime and why does his party matter now?
Duhaime leads the Conservative Party of Quebec, which won 19 seats — its first seats in the National Assembly since 1935, per The Globe and Mail — potentially giving it leverage over PQ legislation, including any referendum bill.
How the world is telling it
FrenchQuebec's French-language outlets Radio-Canada and Journal Métro focused heavily on turnout (66.89%, up less than a point from 2022) and on close individual races, such as CAQ leader Christine Fréchette's defeat in Trois-Rivières by under two points. Coverage framed the Conservative Party's 19-seat breakthrough as historic, noting it had not won a seat in the National Assembly since 1935, and detailed its sweep of Quebec City and South Shore ridings.
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