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MONTREAL — Quebec Premier François Legault says he’s confident the party he co-founded as a third option to federalism and sovereignty will remain a political force in the province after he is replaced as leader.
He told reporters in Quebec City on Wednesday that the Coalition Avenir Québec remains the best party to balance the needs of the economy and protect the French language.
Legault took questions from reporters for the first time since he announced his intention to step down as premier and CAQ leader ahead of October’s provincial election.
“The CAQ, when you look at Article 1…it’s prosperity within Canada, but while seeking more autonomy to defend our language, defend our values,” he said. “So it’s even more relevant than ever.”
Legault formed the party in 2011 as an alternative to the federalist-sovereigntist binary that had dominated the province’s politics for decades, promising a political formation that would fight for greater provincial strength while removing the threat of a referendum.
Since his resignation, analysts have been questioning whether the coalition Legault created of former federalists and sovereigntists would hold together without him, especially with the poll-leading Parti Québécois threatening a referendum in its first term, if elected.
Legault said Wednesday that there is still room for sovereigntists in his party, as long as they accept working within Canada.
“One can be sovereigntist and think that it’s not the right moment, or there isn’t a majority of Quebecers,” he said.
Legault said the Parti Québécois would create economic uncertainty, and the official Opposition Liberals won’t do enough to reverse the decline of French in the Montreal area.
“We need the CAQ to meet those two challenges,” he said.
The Coalition Avenir Québec has yet to announce the rules of its leadership race. While no candidate has officially thrown their hat in the ring, Economy Minister Christine Fréchette, Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette and Environnement Minister Bernard Drainville have all said they’re considering a run.
Finance Minister Eric Girard officially bowed out of leadership contention on Wednesday, but said he planned to run for a third term in October.
Two other high-profile cabinet ministers whose names had circulated as potential leadership candidates– Municipal Affairs Minister Geneviève Guilbault and Education Minister Sonia LeBel — both announced in recent days that they would not run and would leave politics at the end of the current term.
Legault said Wednesday that a certain number of political departures are to be expected, but that his party still has the strongest team.
“Politics is tough, it requires a lot of sacrifices, but when I look at the team that remains in the CAQ right now, we have nothing to envy anyone,” he said. “We have a very strong team and I’m very confident about what’s to come.”
Legault also said he’s not currently planning to prorogue the session of the legislature that opens next month, because he feels its work can continue despite the CAQ leadership race. He also said he wouldn’t endorse anyone in the race to succeed him.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2026.
Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press
