Francoise David harshly criticizes the CAQ at Quebec Solidaire general assembly

Quebec Solidaire (QS) co-founder Francoise David said the next election campaign will be "crucial" for Quebec.

She said voters will essentially have to choose between "two great projects": that of QS and that of François Legault's Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ).

David harshly criticized the CAQ during her speech to about 400 delegates gathered at the party's general assembly at the Cégep du Vieux Montréal on Saturday morning.

She criticized Legault's party for its "incredible softness" on the environment, and said it was "sad and scandalous" to have abandoned voting reform.

On immigration, David said she rejects the CAQ's "conservative nationalism" and "petty rhetoric" that only wants to "scare the world."

She called Legault's "untimely outburst" recently calling for the closure of Roxham Road an "electoral and conservative move" knowing that "it doesn't solve anything."

"He takes advantage of this to repeat to the Quebec population that uncontrolled immigration is a threat to the survival of our nation, and I can't stand this petty rhetoric anymore," she said.

INDIGNATION OVER BILL 96

The applause quickly turned to grumbling when it came to Bill 96 tightening measures to protect the French language in Quebec.

Some party members expressed their displeasure with the position of QS members, who last Tuesday voted for the adoption of Bill 96 in the National Assembly.

"I find it very disappointing that there was no one (...) who thought to consult the members," complained Sam Boskey.

QS parliamentary leader Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois presented an emergency motion explaining the position of the caucus. He said that once in power, QS would change some parts of the law.

"We're not going to hide this morning: the adoption of Bill 96 has caused a lot of reaction," he conceded before the delegates. "We hear the fears, the discontent, (...) the indignation."

His motion promises to extend the period during which newcomers can obtain public services in a language other than French, and to officially recognize a special status for ancestral Indigenous languages and the language rights that go with it.

The motion was finally adopted by a majority.

HOPING TO PROVE POLLS WRONG

Saturday's general assembly is intended to motivate the troops for the election campaign, which will probably be launched in late August.

The most recent Léger poll suggests that the CAQ will win a landslide victory; the party has 46 per cent of voting intentions, compared to 13 per cent for QS.

No pollster in 2018 predicted that QS would win 10 seats, countered Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, who says he wants to prove "the prognosis wrong."

He and party president Alejandra Zaga Mendez said gains are possible "everywhere" in Quebec, specifically in Montreal, the Eastern Townships, the Lower St. Lawrence and Gaspé.

New candidates for QS include Dr. Mélissa Généreux, immigration lawyer Guillaume Cliche-Rivard and Haroun Bouazzi, who is vice-president of the Business Development Bank of Canada.

Sixty-six candidates have been nominated, and the party promises to have 107 by the end of June. Zaga Mendez confirmed that QS has raised $400,000 since the beginning of the year.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 28, 2022.