It’s been a roller-coaster week for the Quebec Liberal Party.
From the sudden dismissal of Marwah Rizqy’s chief of staff, to Rizqy’s suspension from the Liberal caucus in the immediate aftermath, and now allegations of cash-for-votes during the leadership convention, the provincial Liberals and leader Pablo Rodriguez are doing damage control.
CityNews spoke to political analyst Karim Boulos for his take on the situation.
What can you tell us about the allegations that have led to an investigation into the Quebec Liberal Party leadership race?
Well, everything unfolded very quickly over the last 24 hours. From a dismissal that was done by Marwah Rizqy to now leaked texts regarding possible fundraising irregularities – I mean, again, all allegations – but hinting at a possibility of bribes to ensure that Mr. Rodriguez wins the leadership of the party. These are very damning allegations. And oftentimes, being accused is enough. Being found guilty is another issue, but just being accused of possible wrongdoing can have a lasting impact and shake voter confidence. And the public already wasn’t, especially the Francophone public, wasn’t overly favorable towards the Liberal Party. This is only going to go one step further to reaffirming what people worried about during the Charbonneau Commission, during previous administrations, and the rhetoric that we’ve been hearing from the CAQ, the PQ, that the Liberal Party is out of touch and out of date and sort of acting with the old boys’ strategy like they used to.
What do you think this means for the future of Pablo Rodriguez?
It’s very difficult. I mean, I think he did the right thing regarding bringing in an external investigator to look into these texts and these allegations of wrongdoing, of election tampering, if you will, within the party. He’s going to have to basically put all cards on the table and show that he is a man of integrity and transparency. At best, he will come off as somebody who didn’t handle his caucus well and didn’t handle not being in the National Assembly and having his representative, the head of the opposition, run things in his absence. That’s the best-case scenario is that he’ll mismanage his staff. Worst-case scenario, he could resign. This could be very damning because at the end of the day, Pablo Rodriguez is there to rebuild the Liberal Party. And this is a significant, if not multiple steps backwards. And this is going to put a huge dent in their overall strategy, especially on the ground. If they’re trying to build up grassroots support, it’s not by having people think that you bought your way into the leadership.
Now this all started with the suspension of Marwah Rizqy after she fired her chief of staff without telling Rodriguez. What do you think this means for her future?
Marwah Rizqy already announced that she would not be seeking re-election in 2026. So this is her last mandate. She was leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, a job she did very, very well. She was very organized, very prepared, arguably the strongest member of the Liberal caucus. She now sits as a backbencher independent MNA until the end of her term, if nothing else changes. At worst, she will be remembered as a difficult person to work with. Someone who fired the chief of staff who had been on the Pablo Rodriguez team. So let’s say a difference of opinion with his staff. That’s the worst-case scenario. Best-case scenario, she’ll be the whistleblower who said there were things that were not ethical and I would not stand for them as leader of the opposition. Either way, she comes out smelling pretty good.
What does this mean for the Quebec Liberal Party right now, all this drama?
I think that this is a very, very difficult… it was already a very difficult time for the Quebec Liberal Party to think that they are in a rebuilding mode. They’re at almost an all-time low in terms of seats of the National Assembly. They were hopeful. The new leader came, a new vision to spark interest and get the masses excited about a potential Liberal government. This has been a huge setback. And regardless of what the external investigation uncovers, just the allegations are enough to make people question, is this really how we want a potential premier and a potential four-year term to look like? Are there people within his surroundings, are there people in his inner circle that may not be trustworthy? It’s going to raise all those questions. And certainly the PQ and the CAQ and even Québec solidaire is going to use this opportunity for political mileage, but it’s also going to do a huge, huge damage to the Liberal rebuilding process.
