Quebec party logos, from left: Quebec Liberal Party, Coalition Avenir Québec, Parti Québécois, Québec solidaire
The last time Quebecers went to the polls in a provincial general election, 57 per cent of eligible voters took advantage of their right to vote. It was the lowest voter turnout for a Quebec general election since 1927.
The turnout for Tuesday’s general election will probably exceed that. There’s a sense throughout Quebec that the stakes are high, and that people have been paying close attention.
A turnout of 57 per cent isn’t very good by Quebec standards, but it’s a number that compares favourably with voter participation in other jurisdictions. It’s about average for a U.S. presidential election, for instance. And it’s exceptional by Alberta standards: In last April’s provincial election there, the most competitive in a generation, 57 per cent of eligible voters cast ballots — and that was the highest level of participation since 1993. It was up from just 40 per cent in the Alberta election of 2008.
Of course, the electoral stakes are always higher in Quebec than in Alberta or other provinces, since Quebec elections involve one or more separatist parties and therefore have a bearing on national unity and affect the country’s future as a whole. That’s why voter turnout for provincial elections generally runs around the 70 per cent recorded in 2003 or the 71 per cent in 2007. With expectations being that students and young voters more generally will turn out to vote in greater numbers than they did in 2003 or 2007, given the recent furor over proposed university-tuition hikes, it’s reasonable to expect a good turnout overall this time around.
Generally, anglophones in Quebec don’t turn out to vote as much as francophones — partly because large Liberal majorities in anglophone ridings are taken for granted, and so people don’t feel that their one vote is going to make much of a difference. This election is exceptional, however. Coalition Avenir Québec has emerged as a viable federalist electoral option. It is much more than a mere anti-Liberal protest vehicle, like the Union Nationale was for anglos in 1976 or the Equality Party was in 1989.
Changes to Quebec’s electoral map have given the regions around Montreal three new electoral seats, at the expense of seats that have been taken away from the Gaspé, Bas-Saint-Laurent and Chaudière-Appalaches regions. Overall, though, there are still the same 125 seats up for grabs.
Polls open at 9:30 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Eligible voters have been sent reminder cards in the mail from the Directeur général des élections, telling them where they are supposed to vote and informing them that they will have to present customary proof of identity, in the form of a health card, driver’s licence, passport, aboriginal-status certificate or Canadian Forces card. People who can’t find their reminder card, or have other questions, can always phone the DGE’s office at 1-888-353-2846, or go to electionsquebec.qc.ca. (Information there is provided in both French and English.)
As Quebecers, we should take pride in our history of strong electoral engagement. We might disagree on the issues at play in today’s vote, but by and large we respect election outcomes and have a high regard for the rule of law. Ultimately, the collective voice in Quebec consists of many different individual voices. Voting shapes Quebec identity more than any policy statement by any one political party does.
No matter which party you support, please get out and vote. In doing so, you help bring definition to the Quebec of tomorrow.