Pierre Arcand named interim leader of Quebec Liberals

Pierre Arcand has been named the interim leader of the Liberal Party of Quebec.

The newly elected members of the party gathered on Friday morning for their first caucus meeting since Monday's election.

In a secret vote, they chose Arcand to lead the party as it attempts to make sense of its crushing defeat, obtaining the lowest share of the popular vote since Confederation.

The party went from forming a majority government with 68 seats, to serving as the official opposition, with 32 MNAs.

"When times get rough, you have to know how to get back up," Arcand said during the announcement.

During the last mandate, Arcand served as minister of energy and natural resources, as well as minister responsible for the North Shore region.

He was named chair of the Treasury Board in 2017. He was first elected in 2007, and was re-elected Monday with a comfortable 51.34 per cent of the vote

The interim leadership may be a relatively long one, as the party tries to figure out how to move forward.

Several MNAs said the party needed to reconnect with its members to understand why so many people chose to not cast a vote for the Liberals.

"We are ready to work together on this. We are aware there is a long road ahead," Arcand said.

Guy Ouellette thrown out of caucus

The MNA for Chomedey, Guy Ouellette, will not take part part in this new chapter — the Liberal caucus voted to kick him out.

During the election campaign, François Legault confirmed media reports Ouellette leaked information to the CAQ.

Ouellette denied he was the source of the leak, suggesting members of Quebec's anti-corruption unit (UPAC) sent the information after confiscating his computers.

The outgoing leader Philippe Couillard defended him, even days before the elections, promising a place for him in the caucus.

But Ouellette was absent from the party's first post-election meeting on Thursday, and didn't show up for the caucus meeting on Friday morning.

New role as opposition party

The newly elected MNAs applauded their new leader as he vowed to keep the CAQ in check and make sure it respects its electoral promises.

"You promised a lot, now you will have to deliver on those promises," Arcand said.

He said the Liberals' other priority will be to discredit the economic platform Québec Solidaire presented during the campaign, calling it "unrealistic."

When questioned why the Liberals were already focusing its attention on a party that doesn't yet have official status, Arcand replied they "were a bit annoyed to hear [QS] call themselves the official opposition."

Québec Solidaire co-spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois said it will be difficult for the Liberals to do their job in the opposition because their platform is "practically the same as the government's".

"The only party at the National Assembly to really have a different vision of society is Québec Solidaire," he said at the party's caucus meeting in Montreal.

Meanwhile, Legault tweeted that as the leader of the official opposition, Arcand would be his "counterpart".

"I am convinced that we will be able to work constructively for Quebecers," he wrote.

Legault-Couillard meeting

While the vote was taking place, outgoing Premier Philippe Couillard met with Legault to begin discussing the transition of power, which Couillard promised to make "as smooth as possible."

Couillard said Legault was lucky to start his mandate with a solid financial situation, one of the legacies the Liberals said they achieved during their mandate, by delivering four consecutive balanced budgets.

"I didn't arrive in the same conditions in 2014," Couillard said.

Legault said the two leaders had more in common than met the eye, despite Couillard taking aim at the CAQ's intention to ban religious symbols in the workplace.

Couillard alluded to the divisive issue during his speech on Thursday, when he announced he was leaving politics. 

"Quebec must remain a welcoming place, a society where everyone has a seat at the table, a place where people are judged by what they have in their heads, not on their heads," he said in his outgoing speech.

Couillard would not comment on these opposing visions on Friday, saying he didn't want to dive into "sensitive topics."

"For me, the page is turned," Couillard said.

Legault agreed, saying the campaign, and the debates, were over, and wished Couillard "happiness" in his new life.