Pauline Marois's eyes fixed on majority

For weeks, PaulineMaroisbrushed off election rumours.

Amid the growing likelihood of a spring vote, thepremier playfully repeated there is no election underway, as far as I know!

Her tune changed in late February.

I understand the opposition parties dont want to adopt our budget, she said.

Finance Minister Nicolas Marceaus economic plan had unsurprisingly drawn criticism from the Liberals andCoalitionAvenirQubec.

• Parti Qubcois budget aimed at triggering election, opposition says

With little or no chance it would be adopted, the budget was to beMaroisskey to asnap electiontabled just asMNAswere about to leave the national assembly for two weeks in theirrespectiveridings.

Its a total blockage,Maroissaid, describing the way opposition parties were treating the budget.In fact, it wasnt that categorical.

TheCAQsFranoisLegaultsaid his party couldnt support the budget in its current form, but Liberal leader

PhilippeCouillardrequested time for a thorough review.

Whether the opposition parties would have really voted down the budget and, in turn, the minoritygovernment is now irrelevant.

Maroiswont give them that chance. Instead, shes sendingQuebecersto thepolls, convinced the time is right to ask for a majority mandate.

Justifying an earlyelection

In 2008, JeanCharest, then leading a minority government, also had to come up with an excuse to committens of millions of taxpayer dollars to an election. He turned to the economy.

Quebecersneeded no more than two hands on the wheel to weather the economic storm,Charestsaid overand over.

His gamble paid off, with the Liberals increasing their seat count and gaining a majority at the nationalassembly.

Maroishopes voters will buy into her justification, too, despite itsmoot-ness.

Expect theParti Qubcois leader to repeatedly blameCouillardandLegaultfor this election, a vote that flies in the faceof theMaroisgovernments own fixed election date law.

Under the law, Quebecs next general election isnt supposed to be held until 2016.

The date of the election should not belong to the government, saidPQminister BernardDrainvillewhentabling the bill.

The other parties wont let thePQforget its ignoring its own law. Already,Couillardhas said hell challengeMaroison her reasons for calling an early election.

Terminal minorities

ThePQwill surely defend itself by suggesting the law only applies to majority governments. Eighteen monthsis, after all, a standard life expectancy for a minority government.

Maroiswill instead want to shift the debate and flaunt her governments recent handling of the economy signing deals to save jobs at Alcoa, promote oil exploration offAnticostiisland and gain control of federal jobtraining money.

If she succeeds, voters will forget about the election date law.

They could even give her the majority mandateshe so wants,looking pastMaroissostensible excuse for a triggering an election in the first place.