Accusations of American interference were still making waves on the Quebec campaign trail Saturday, just before advance voting for the Oct. 5 election.
“I mainly want to make Quebecers aware of the situation that could arise. So far, there hasn’t been any interference; it’s not happening yet. However, it seems like there might be attempts from American interests to disrupt Canada and Quebec,” Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette said while campaigning in Gatineau.
The accusations dominated the electoral conversation on Friday as Fréchette voiced worries about Americans attempting to get the sovereigntist Parti Québécois elected in order to destabilize Canada.
After receiving doubtful reactions from her opponents, she reaffirmed her concerns on Saturday, clarifying that there was no evidence of interference in the upcoming elections.
She connected her worries with the PQ’s commitment to hold a referendum on Quebec independence in their first term.
“Holding a referendum would play into the Americans’ hands. That raises some questions,” she stated.
PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has indicated he would hold a referendum during his first mandate but not while Trump is president.
Fréchette’s remarks on Friday followed a news report by Quebecor media citing two unnamed sources from the CAQ government who claimed American officials had reached out to Quebec for direct tariff negotiations.
The report also highlighted an essay in February by a U. S.-based think tank, the Defense Analyses and Research Corporation, which suggested that Americans should work towards destabilizing the Canadian federation.
Fréchette mentioned she had recently become aware of essays by this think tank, leading her party to reach out to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. She stated that a meeting was organized with the federal intelligence agency last Wednesday.
No proof of foreign interference, Anand says
Federal Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand stated on Friday that she hadn’t seen any proof of foreign interference in the election but was taking these allegations seriously.
St-Pierre Plamondon, who was campaigning in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures near Quebec City, suggested on Saturday that Fréchette’s party may have intentionally leaked information about foreign interference to gain media attention.
When asked about this claim, Fréchette didn’t respond directly and defended her government’s strategy regarding trade negotiations.
“What this article is based on is fact,” she said, adding that the think tank’s essays were already publicly available.
WATCH | How elections come together:
Take a look behind the scenes at Élections Québec p>How does Élections Québec prepare for voting day? CBC takes a peek inside the office that oversees the province’s electoral process and finds out what motivates citizens to get involved.
Her opponents quickly pointed out how unclear it is just how immediate U. S. interference might be in this Quebec election.
St-Pierre Plamondon described CAQ’s actions as throwing a “Hail Mary.” p >
“I’ve never seen such poor (political) theater. It’s typical for parties getting desperate at this stage of their campaign,” he said.
Rival accuses CAQ of fearmongering
Éric Duhaime, Conservative leader, accused CAQ of running a fear-driven campaign.
“If CAQ’s campaign is struggling today, it’s because they’ve been trying to scare people since day one. They started with Trump – that didn’t work. Then they tried it with us,” he remarked.
“That didn’t succeed either. Now they’re going after claims of interference.”
Québec Solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal noted that these claims fit into what she called CAQ’s tradition of lacking transparency.
Liberal Leader Charles Milliard also urged clarity regarding these allegations.
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