Another election? Quebeckers are rolling their eyes. If Canadians are indeed once more called to the polls, this will be the sixth time in five years for Quebeckers. Since 2004, on top of three federal elections, there have been two provincial elections, the latest in December, 2008. Not to mention the fact that a federal campaign will likely interfere with municipal elections scheduled throughout the province.
The Liberals are pinning high hopes on Quebec. Insiders believe they can win as many as a dozen new seats (they now have 14 of 75 Quebec ridings). Of course, compared to the golden era of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, this is a modest goal. The Bloc Québécois remains an unbeatable adversary, and right now one can't see what could make the Bloc lose its grip on the province. The latest polls indicate the Liberals are more or less neck and neck with the Bloc, but such numbers are deceptive since a great deal of the Liberal vote is concentrated in the Montreal area and the Bloc remains by far the favourite among the francophone electorate that controls the majority of ridings.
Outside political and intellectual circles, Michael Ignatieff is even less known in Quebec than elsewhere in the country, and nobody knows why exactly he wants to topple the government. Strangely, Mr. Ignatieff didn't take advantage of the summer to make himself more visible. At the end of August, he did spend several days in the Eastern Townships, but provoked a wave of fury when he said Canada should stop exporting asbestos. (The industry supports 700 jobs and is the lifeline of the area.)
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