A recent poll reveals that the Quebec separatist party has opened up a significant lead over the current ruling party — and plans to hold a sovereignty referendum after forming government. 

The Quebec independence party known as Party Quebecoise (PQ) is leading provincial polls by nine points over Premier François Legault’s Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ).

The next provincial general election is scheduled to take place on October 5, 2026. If the PQ wins, they will host a referendum, asking Quebecers if they want to separate from Canada and form their own independent nation state.

The lead is particularly notable given that the PQ’s leader, St-Pierre Plamondon, is openly campaigning about his intentions.

​​”I’ll govern in any case, but no one will be unaware that I’m a pro-independence party and that I intend for Quebec to become a country,” he said in November.

Current polling puts support for independence at around 40 percent which is similar to pre-referendum polls in 1995, when Quebec chose to remain with Canada by the slimmest of margins, and the independence vote earned 49.42 percent.

St-Pierre Plamondon further said that migration is “completely out of our hands,” and that the Quebec language and economy is suffering because of it.

“We don’t see a future for French in Canada, we don’t see a future for our economic interests,” he said. 

Supporters and members of the PQ believe that if Quebec were to become a country, it could reset migration policies without the intervention of the Canadian federal government. 

The federal Liberals have taken in record high migration numbers since 2015, including record high illegal immigration and residents overstaying their temporary visas.

Over 60% of Canadians believe immigration is too high according to polling from July 2024.