The Parti Quebecois' National Council, which is being held in Trois-Rivieres this weekend, is already off to a shaky start.
After losing an MNA and being downgraded to the status of third opposition party, the PQ is now looking for a way to reinvent itself.
On the first day of the gathering, a member of the PQ's youth wing resigned, stating that the party's rebuilding progress is being dictated by its leaders, and not by grassroots members.
Felix Pelletier-Belzile announced his resignatoin following a meeting with the party's executive members and interim leader Pascal Berube on Friday night.
In a press briefing on Saturday morning, he said he felt that there is already a desire to bring the party to a "predetermined" destination.
A petition to create a new movement has 1500 signatures.
At the National Council, however, the PQ is planning to debate all issues on the table, and rebuild after a historic defeat - the worst in 45 years - during the provincial election last October.
Earlier this month, MNA Catherine Fournier left the party, saying the PQ will never succeed at making Quebec independent.
Fournier, 26, says the sovereigntist movement needs an eletroshock to make it relevant to young Quebecers.
"For some, they are frustrated because of the results of the election, but one has to respect that because that's the decision of Quebecers," said Marc Laviolette, Beauharnois riding president. "Right now we're in a period where we need to reconstruct the party."
Some members say that the only non-negotiable during this rebuilding time is the party's commitment to sovereignty.
However, support for independence is on the decline. A poll by six research institutes shows only 18 per cent of young Quebecers identify as sovereigntists.
Fifty five per cent of the province think it's an outdated idea.
Interim leader Pascal berube says to stay relevant, the PQ has to change.
"It will, because we don't have any choice [after] the results of October 1," Berube explained. "We want the party to be new, to be open, to be humble."
