QUEBEC / RankWire.AI / – The Parti Québécois won Quebec’s provincial election and will form a minority government after securing 59 seats. The party finished five seats short of the 64 required for a majority in the 127-member National Assembly. Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon is set to become Quebec’s next premier. The result returns the Parti Québécois to government for the first time since 2014, following a 2022 election in which it captured only three seats.
The Quebec Liberal Party finished second with 40 seats and will become the official opposition. The Conservative Party of Quebec won 19 seats, while Québec solidaire secured nine. The Coalition Avenir Québec failed to retain a single seat after eight years in government. The result marks a dramatic change from the 2022 election, when the CAQ won 90 seats. Quebec’s legislature will now include four parties, with none holding enough seats to govern alone.
Preliminary figures placed the Parti Québécois at about 27.9% of the popular vote. That share was enough to produce the largest caucus because support divided among several major parties. The Liberals, Conservatives, CAQ and Québec solidaire each drew significant portions of the vote. Élections Québec continued to classify the election-night totals as preliminary while the official process remained underway. The seat distribution leaves the incoming government dependent on support from other parties to pass legislation requiring a majority.
Parti Québécois regains power without majority
The election also placed Quebec sovereignty back at the center of provincial politics. St-Pierre Plamondon has pledged to hold another referendum on independence after U.S. President Donald Trump leaves office. Quebec voters rejected sovereignty in referendums held in 1980 and 1995. The second vote produced a narrow federalist victory. During the 2026 campaign, the Parti Québécois continued to present independence as a core political objective while seeking a mandate on broader provincial issues.
A minority government will require cooperation inside the National Assembly on confidence votes and other legislation. The Quebec Liberals opposed another sovereignty referendum during the campaign. The Conservatives also rejected holding a new vote on independence. Québec solidaire supports Quebec sovereignty but differs from the Parti Québécois across several policy areas. With 59 seats, the PQ holds the largest bloc but lacks outright control. The final balance gives opposition parties an important role in votes that determine whether legislation passes.
CAQ wiped from legislature after two majorities
The result ended the Coalition Avenir Québec’s period in power, which began with its 2018 election victory. Outgoing Premier Christine Fréchette lost her race in Trois-Rivières as the party failed to elect any members. The CAQ had won consecutive majority governments before the 2026 defeat. Its collapse removed a party that had dominated the previous legislature. Fréchette conceded the election and thanked supporters after the scale of the losses became clear, closing an eight-year period of CAQ government.
Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated the incoming premier and said Ottawa was prepared to work with Quebec’s new government. He also thanked Fréchette for her service as premier. Carney said the federal government remained focused on supporting Quebec workers and businesses, including those affected by tariffs. The provincial result leaves the Parti Québécois five seats short of a majority as it prepares to take office. Quebec now enters a new legislative term under its first PQ government in more than a decade.