Québec Solidaire names Émilise Lessard-Therrien as new co-spokesperson

Former MNA Émilise Lessard-Therrien is the new co-spokesperson for Québec Solidaire (QS). 

Lessard-Therrien beat out Sherbrooke MNA Christine Labrie and Mercier MNA Ruba Ghazal, who also serves as the party's education critic.

Members of the opposition party gathered at a convention in Gatineau, Que., to choose the person to replace Manon Massé as outgoing co-spokesperson.

"It is clearer than ever, Québec Solidaire is the party of Quebec as a whole," said Lessard-Therrien, who turns 32 on Monday.

"To the people of the regions, you now have a great ally who understands you, who will represent and defend you." 

On the first round of voting, Ghazal received most of the votes with 36.2 per cent compared to Lessard-Therrien's 35.4 per cent and Labrie's 28.4 per cent.

However, the second round of voting saw Lessard-Therrien win by a thin margin at 50.3 per cent of the vote with Ghazal taking the remaining 49.7 per cent. 

Ghazal, who lost by a mere 0.6 per cent, did not hide her feelings.

"I was disappointed because I gave everything," she said. "We knew it was going to be close."

However, Ghazal said she would press on because QS as a party is more important that the co-spokesperson race.

Labrie, for her part, said she was "happy" to get behind the new co-spokesperson.

"I needed the party to make the decision to have a spokesperson outside Montreal. [Lessard-Therrien] will be able to count on me," she said. 

Farmer to legislator 

In 2018, Lessard-Therrien was elected to the National Assembly in the Rouyn-Noranda–Témiscamingue riding in the province's Abitibi region, but she lost her seat in 2022.

After her defeat, she returned to her job as a farmer. 

In 2019, she graduated from the Université du Québec à Montréal with a bachelor's degree in education, with a focus on high school education.

Lessard-Therrien has said she could help the party win over voters in the province's regions — where it has struggled to gain a foothold. All but three of its 11 ridings in Quebec are in Montreal.

Vote of confidence 

On Sunday, QS party members also backed Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois in a confidence vote with 90 per cent support.

"You have given me a strong mandate, and I will do everything to live up to it," said Nadeau-Dubois.

"I don't promise to have magic formulas or miracle solutions. There is work to be done and there are changes to make together."

In 2021, Nadeau-Dubois received 94 per cent of the vote.

He has been co-spokesperson for the party since 2017 and was the party's candidate for premier in the last provincial election.