‘Something must change’: Liberals are under siege in Montreal days before byelection

In a recent poll, the Bloc Québécois the lead with 32 per cent in the Quebec riding of LaSalle—Émard—Verdun

Published Sep 09, 2024  •  Last updated 0 minutes ago  •  5 minute read

Daniel Wiseman, resident in Verdun for over 30 years, has no idea who he will vote for in the upcoming byelection in his riding. Speaking in an interview in the middle of the famous Wellington Street, Wiseman said, “I’m torn. I’m really torn. This year, I’m completely undecided.”. Photo by Antoine Trepanier /National Post

MONTREAL — It’s considered a Liberal fortress, but these days it feels like the ramparts of Lasalle—Émard—Verdun are shaking. Who knows? Maybe the byelection here on Sept. 16 could send the Trudeau Liberals to the dungeons. 

Daniel Wiseman isn’t sure yet how he wants things to turn out. The lifelong separatist who has lived in Verdun for over 30 years has no idea who he will vote for in just over a week.

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“I’m very interested in the election. Something must change. We need someone who cares about people,” he said in an interview in the middle of the famous Wellington Street, a pedestrian mall that TimeOut magazine once dubbed the “coolest street in the world.” 

The Bloc Québécois? Wiseman isn’t so sure. “I’m torn. I’m really torn. This year, I’m completely undecided,” he added. 

In a recent poll, Mainstreet Research put the Bloc in the lead with 32 per cent, followed by the Liberals with 23 per cent and the NDP with 19 per cent. The Conservatives have virtually no chance of winning the riding, which was left vacant when former attorney general David Lametti quit politics in February.

Former prime minister Paul Martin also represented the area in the House of Commons. Except for the 2011 election, when Quebec briefly swooned for the NDP, Liberals have consistently taken this riding, or its predecessor LaSalle—Émard, by comfortable margins going back to the 1980s.

Poll aggregator 338Canada has the Liberals and the Bloc Québécois in a toss up, with both parties respectively at 29 and 28 per cent, followed by the NDP at 24. 

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So, winning over undecided voters like Wisemen is crucial for these political parties. And as early voting began last week, many voters were still having trouble making up their minds. 

“I used to vote for the Liberals all the time, really. But you know, they’re not the same group anymore. Nobody has my allegiance. They have to show that they can do the job,” said Carolyn Didyk, a Verdun resident. 

At her door, Louis-Philippe Sauvé is fighting hard to convince this English-speaking Quebecer to vote for him. A former political staffer in Ottawa, Sauvé is running as the Bloc Québécois candidate. 

“Listen, the Conservatives have no chance of winning here. The NDP is basically affiliated with the Liberals who have taken this riding for granted for years. I am asking you for a one-year probation period. Send me to Ottawa and fire me in a year (in the general election) if you don’t like me,” he bargained with her.

Didyk seemed intrigued. “Is your website available in English?” she asked. “Yes, I think so,” he replied. It is not. She says she doesn’t think she’ll vote for him. But she says she won’t be voting for the Trudeau Liberals.

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The NDP is running another candidate named Sauvé. Craig Sauvé.

“What is really stark at the doors is the desire for change. It’s really, really stark,” the NDP candidate says.

He was the first candidate to launch his campaign in the spring, giving him a nearly two-month head start on his opponents. He’s a Montreal city councillor in a district right next to the riding he is seeking to win in this byelection. As a councillor, he supported the Maison Benoit Labre project, a drug-consumption site that has been at the centre of angry controversy because of its proximity to an elementary school. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre visited the area this summer and called it a “drug den.”  

The NDP is confident it is well positioned to win Lasalle—Émard—Verdun, which would give it its second seat on the Island of Montreal. At the party’s headquarters on Wellington Street, a dozen staffers and volunteers were preparing get-out-the-vote efforts Thursday. The campaign says it has more than 200 volunteers and plans to spend well over $100,000 to win this election. The limit is $122,207. 

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“That’s going to be a problem for (the Liberals) when they see the result on Sept. 16. If it’s what we think it is, they’re in very, very big trouble,” Craig Sauvé said. 

The Bloc boasts that it has more than 300 volunteers and the Liberals claim about 400.

At NDP headquarters, the confidence is palpable, even as the message remains “we’re not taking anything for granted.”   

The Conservative Party of Canada did not respond to a request for an interview, and Liberal candidate Laura Palestini declined an interview.

The Liberals are counting on what they call their “Team Quebec” to hold onto the seat. Several ministers have been campaigning with Palestini, who is also a local city councillor. Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, who is far from a liability for the Liberals in Quebec, has reportedly visited the riding five times. 

On Thursday, it was Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s turn. 

“I think we’re in a very tight race,” said Champagne, speaking in the middle of his visit to the riding. “I don’t think anyone can pretend that they have a better chance than us. We’re going to do the hard work that needs to be done. That’s what our candidate is doing.”

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But the Liberals are definitely feeling the pressure from other parties as they try to hang onto their once-safe seat, according to sources. One member of the Liberal team said the party is particularly worried about the Bloc’s rise. 

Bloc organizers know it. A senior source in that party said they were mobilized like never before to win this seat. The province’s Parti Québécois leader, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, who is leading in the polls among Quebecers, has been helping out by campaigning for the Bloc.

Recently, the BQ held a rally where more than 350 people filled the Maison de la culture in Verdun, an uncommonly large crowd for a riding byelection.

“They threatened to call the firefighters. It was crazy,” BQ candidate Louis-Philippe Sauvé said, smiling. 

In the 2021 general election, the party finished second with more than 10,000 votes. But Lametti won it for the Liberals with more than 20,000 votes. 

The Bloc figures if the Liberals’ turnout is low enough, and the BQ can bring out their own voters, they stand a chance of winning. The NDP and the Liberals have their own ambitions for Sept. 16. With barely a week before polls close, none of them can say with confidence which one will win out.

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