All eyes were on Coalition Avenir Quebec leader Francois Legault for the third and final debate of the election campaign.
He was facing pressure to breathe new life into his campaign after polls showed support for the CAQ had been slipping for the past week.
Those polls, showing the CAQ might be losing its lead to the Liberals, and showing the PQ was in third but at risk of falling behind Quebec Solidaire, had the leaders jumpy.
The one on one format of the debates also led to torqued exchanges such as when Legault challenged Liberal leader Philippe Couillard over a statement he made earlier in the day that it was possible for a single parent could feed two teenagers on $75 a week -- although the food quality and choices would be limited.
"It happens that I do groceries. I have two sons, so there are four of us at home. $250 to $300 each week. No, no, it's not possible for $75. Mr. Couillard you are disconnected," said Legault.
Couillard said that for some families in Quebec $75 is all they can budget, so it does happen, and it was why his government worked to improve the status of poor Quebecers.
In another exchange Legault and Parti Quebecois leader Jean-Francois Lisée about his belief that the threat of sovereignty is a useful tool to obtain more powers from the federal government.
"When we took duties [from Ottawa] it was because Jean Chretien was afraid of independence," said Lisée.
"Do you really think you have a strong hand when you look at the weak support for sovereignty? Nobody is taking you seriously, even though that's your slogan," said Legault.
During the two hour debate the leaders discussed a range of topics including health care, education, religious signs, the economy and corruption.
Couillard seemed backed into a corner when he was questioned about the cost of groceries but also on the issue of a secular state, which he called a defense of minority rights.
Legault tried to walk back his party's plan to expel people, even though he had used the term multiple times this week. During the debate he tried to recast his party's plan to deport immigrant citizens who had not mastered French as a way to not accept people who couldn't pass a simple test.
Meanwhile Lisée, who has seen support for the PQ stagnate, tried hard to win back supporters who prefer Quebec Solidaire by questioning Manon Massé about her party's choice to have two co-spokespersons rather than a leader -- at a time when the pair were supposed to be debating health care.
After the debate the leaders defended their tactics as a way to promote their parties' messages.
"The question is who is the most capable of being premier," said Couillard. "A premier puts people together doesn't pull people apart. A premier unites people of all origins in Quebec."
Lisée said, in not so many words, that Quebec Solidaire is only pretending to be equitable.
"This party Quebec Solidaire, a new party on the scene, they have spokespersons but there is a chief somewhere that is more important than the spokespersons, so I think it's a service to render to transparence and democracy to ask this question," said Lisée.
Legault said his ultimate goal is to ensure immigrants settle in Quebec and adapt to the province.
"That's the power that the Quebec government has: to give or not a selection certificate so what I say is that I'll do my best, I'll do all I can to make sure that people pass those tests that they are well integrated in Quebec," said Legault.
For her part, Massé said there are larger issues that the other leaders are not discussing.
"Everybody, old, youth, talk about the fear that they have about climate change. They want a political party who is grounded in reality," said Massé
Advance polls open Friday, and election day is Oct. 1.
