Ex-MP and former Montreal mayor Denis Coderre speaks at a news conference, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Quebec City. Coderre announced his decision to run for the Quebec Liberal leadership for the next election. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
MONTREAL – Former Montreal mayor Denis Coderre is seeking the leadership of the Quebec Liberal party.
Coderre made the announcement this morning in Quebec City, pitching himself as a seasoned politician who can help the party find itself.
He says the Liberals are the only federalist party in Quebec and that he doesn’t want to keep debating another independence referendum.
Coderre is the first candidate to officially throw his hat in the ring and wants to run in the next provincial election in the riding of Bellechasse, outside Quebec City.
Coderre was a member of Parliament with the federal Liberals from 1997 to 2013, and served as mayor of Montreal from 2013 until 2017, when he lost to Mayor Valérie Plante.
The Quebec Liberals have struggled to find their footing since Premier François Legault led the Coalition Avenir Québec to power in 2018, and the party Coderre hopes to lead is polling in single digits with francophone voters.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 21, 2024.
