François Legault is using "Stephen Harper's little book" by brandishing the fiscal proposals of Québec solidaire (QS) as scarecrows, said Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois.

The QS co-spokesman said that the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) leader is opting for a defensive strategy.

The latter has begun to distribute leaflets pointing to the "orange method," which consists of "taking more and more money from the wallet of the middle class," it says.

"He decided to turn to a strategy popularized by Stephen Harper: negative advertising. François Legault has decided to dip into Stephen Harper's little book," said Nadeau-Dubois Saturday morning in Montreal, after his appearance at the Force Jeunesse conference.

The CAQ's leaflet turns the "corners" on QS's commitments on taxation, Nadeau-Dubois said.

"Distributing leaflets to smear Québec solidaire, it will not convince Quebecers to vote for François Legault. I believe that this way of doing politics, it does not work in Quebec," he said.

The CAQ leader said he wanted to inform voters before they go to the polls.

"Orange taxes are negative. (...) It is therefore important that Quebecers know what they are getting into with Mr. Nadeau-Dubois," said Legault at a news briefing in Levis.

The CAQ pamphlet mentions the proposal to tax vehicles emitting 210 grams or more of CO2 per kilometre, writing that the purchase of a Toyota Camry would result in an additional cost of $4,831. Legault used the example during Thursday's leaders' debate.

He "plays with the truth," according to Nadeau-Dubois. "There are several models of Camry. And there are four out of six that will not be affected by the measure we are proposing. The two that will be affected are the high-performance models, which are already much more polluting and expensive," he said.

Sport utility vehicles such as the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CRV would also be exempt from the new tax, Nadeau-Dubois added, since they are below the CO2 emission standard proposed by QS.

The money generated by the tax on "ultra-polluting vehicles" would be reinvested to reduce the price of cars "which are good choices," said the Solidarity leader.

SHERBROOK, 'ORANGE CITY'

After attending the Force Jeunesse conference, Nadeau-Dubois went to Sherbrooke for a third time since the beginning of the election campaign. The riding is coveted by the CAQ, which is banking on the former mayor of Longueuil, Caroline St-Hilaire.

QS made a breakthrough in the Eastern Townships capital in 2018 when Christine Labrie won. The party is putting a lot of effort into keeping this seat as the race looks to be close between the QS and the CAQ candidate, according to a recent Segma-La Tribune-107.7 FM poll. The party also wants to take the neighbouring riding of Saint-François.

"We're putting all our efforts into Sherbrooke, we're putting all our efforts into the Eastern Townships because we don't just want Christine Labrie to be re-elected. We want to add Philippe Pagé in Richmond, Mélissa Généreux in Saint-François. We take nothing for granted in the region," he said, flanked by these three candidates.

"Sherbrooke is an orange city, and we want it to remain so," added Nadeau-Dubois.

Proof of the charm operation that is underway, Nadeau-Dubois committed $4.2 billion in public transportation in the Sherbrooke region on Saturday. The promise includes the construction of two streetcar lines, nine high-frequency bus lines and a connection with the intercity transportation network proposed by QS with Québec-Rail and Québec-Bus.

On Saturday night, Québec Solidaire held a rally - the largest of its election tour - at the Granada Theatre in downtown Sherbrooke. The "L'Estrie de show" event featured artistic performances, including singer Fanny Bloom, and political speeches.

An hour before the start of the evening, a long line of people stretched for several metres in front of the hall with a capacity of more than 1,000 spectators on Wellington Street North.

"The last time I saw a line like this to go to the Granada Theatre, it was when Charlotte Cardin came," said Labrie.

Nadeau-Dubois spoke of a "show of force" showing the energy of QS on the ground in Sherbrooke.

The event was sold out. Some people were refused at the door, said the QS leader, who was greeted with loud applause from enthusiastic party members.

His co-spokesperson, Manon Massé, appealed to young people under 34 to vote, who represent one-third of voters.

"François Legault won last time with 36% (of the vote). Do you see the weight you have? (...) It means that this year, the youth vote weighs heavily in the balance, so please, make your vote count. If you put your weight in the balance, on October 3, the face of politics in Quebec can change," said Massé. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Sept. 17, 2022.