Christian Bourque, executive vice-president of polling firm Leger, said the Quebec Conservative Party has become a home for people who feel that they've been talked down to, or dismissed as conspiracy theorists, during the pandemic.

The Quebec government has recommended better airflow in classrooms and has offered air exchanges to schools. But it's not clear how many have been installed and many teachers are having to open windows, despite bitterly cold weather in the province.

Two of the Quebec cities most affected by COVID-19 Montrealand its northern suburb Laval, Que., have among the lowest vaccination rates in the province, according to data from Quebec's public health institute.

The number of outbreaks and infections in long-term care facilities and seniors residences has dropped sharply, gerontologists suggest a number of factors are at play, including vaccination.