QUEBEC -- From mayor of Montreal to a run at premier of Quebec -- what's Denis Coderre's next move?
A new poll shows Liberal supporters would vote for Coderre, Montreal's former mayor and ex-MP for the federal Liberals, above any other candidate.
The Léger Marketing survey conducted for the Journal de Montréal showed that Coderre is the clear favourite:
Here's how Liberal supporters say they would vote:
- Denis Coderre: 19%
- Dominique Anglade: 12%
- Alexandre Cusson 8%
- Pierre Moreau: 5%
- Pierre Arcand: 3%
- Sophie Brochu 2%
- Alexandre Taillefer 2%
- Andre Fortin 2%
- Alexandre Boulay 1%
Most Liberal voters, however, said they're still undecided: 44 per cent haven't made their choice yet.
Of the names in the poll, only two are currently in the running for the job.
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Dominique Anglade, the Saint-Henri--Sainte-Anne MNA who served as deputy premier and economic development and innovation minister under Philippe Couillard launched her leadership bid on Friday.
- Alexandre Cusson, who is the mayor of Drummondville and served as president of the Union of Quebec Municipalities, announced his run at the leadership on Saturday.
Coderre has not made public any potential plans to run.
When asked about Coderre getting into the provincial political mix, Premier Francois Legault said "I'll leave that to the Liberals – it's none of my business."
Watch reaction from Legault, Barrette and Leitao here:
A few Liberals did have something to say: MNA Gaetan Barrette chuckled when Coderre's name came up, saying it would be "amusing, interesting, dynamic."
Barrette, who has been adamant that he won't throw his support behind any Liberal leadership contender, said that Coderre's name is "always popping up -- and that's always interesting."
"Everybody who speaks about Denis Coderre, everybody is surprised that he's not yet back into politics. Everybody is wondering where he's going to land. He might land in our race; he might not. I don't know," he said, adding that "you can expect something quite energetic if he were to run."
MNA Carlos Leitao said "it's his decision if he wants to run or not."
"He's certainly well-known and he's worked in both municipal and federal politics, so he's well experienced," he said. "If he wants to jump in, all I can say is 'welcome.' The more, the merrier."
The next Liberal leader will be chosen in May 2020.
