Quebec election: Liberals win majority
Parti Qubcois Leader Pauline Marois loses own seat
Nineteen months after they were ousted from power, the Liberals in Quebec will form the province's next majority government.
The Liberals took 70 seats in the 125 seat National Assembly, the PartiQubcois30, the CoalitionAvenirQubec22 and Qubec Solidairethree.
The Liberals entered this election campaign as the official opposition, butbattled back from a public backlash and integrity questions that saw the province elect its firstPartiQubcoisminority government in the fall of 2012.
The election itself, called early by the PQ with majority hopes in sight, was a gamble from the start and it's one the party lost.
Pauline Marois, who lost her own seat in herCharlevoixCte-de-Beauprriding, stepped down as party leader during an emotional concession speech in front of her supporters.
It was a clear message from Quebec voters that economic stability was more important than lingering questions about the party's integrity. And, that the population didn't want the divisive politics that emerged as a result of thePQ's proposed secular values charter.
At his victory rally in his home riding of Roberval,Couillardpromisedthat he would serve as thepremier of all Quebecers.
"We should all focus on what brings us together. What unites us makes us stronger. Let us say together with passion, 'Noussommestous fierd'treQubcois.'"
This was the party's first election withCouillard at the helm. The formerMNAbriefly left politics before returning to the party's leadership race in 2013,,
Capitalizing onPQmissteps around the referendum and cultural issues, the former neurosurgeonand his team convincedQuebecersthat thevraiesaffaires, or real issues, that mattered most to the province were the economy and jobs.
The Liberalstook an early lead in the popular vote, with about 41 per cent, a gain of 10 percentage points over 2012.
ThePQtookabout 25 per cent, a drop of seven percentage points from 2012.
The CoalitionAvenir Qubeccaptured about 23per cent, down four percentage points.
QubecSolidairetook about seven per cent of the popular vote, up one point from the last election.
Other party leaders
CAQLeader Franois Legaultand Qubec Solidaire co-spokesperson Franoise David were both re-elected.
''I respect this democratic choice, but I do hope that you will join our party in growing numbers in the months and the years to come to build a real alternative to the Liberals," Legaulttold supporters gathered in Repentigny.
"We need you to build a stronger and more prosperous Quebec, which includes all its citizens.''
Quebec's chief electoral office reporteda voter turnout of almost 63 per cent as of 8:20p.m. ET.
More than a million Quebecerscast votes in the advancepolls.
Liberals react to Quebec win
Prominent Liberalsin the rest of Canada were quick to offer their congratulations to their Quebec colleagues.
Federal Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau issued a statement that emphasized the result showed Quebecershave priorities above sovereignty.
"Today, Quebecers voted for a better economy, instead of a third referendum, by electing Philippe Couillard as their new premier and giving the Quebec Liberal Party a strong mandate to address the real issues in the province," the statement reads.
Ontario Liberal Leader and Premier Kathleen Wynne offered her congratulations on Twitter.
Star candidates shine
Media mogul Pierre Karl Pladeau won his seat in the riding of Saint-Jrme, taking the seat for the Parti Qubcois at the expense of the CAQ.
Two of the Liberalstars GatanBarrette, who swapped from theCAQ to the Liberalsthis election,andHlneDavid, sister of QubecSolidairespokeswoman Franoise David also won in their respective ridings.
The PQ's Lo Bureau-Blouin, the youngest MNA in Quebec's history and astar of the student movement, is trailing in his race in the Laval-des-Rapides riding.
Across Quebec, a total of 814 candidates wererunning for election and 6,012,440 people wereregistered to vote.
This wasthe second timeQuebecershave gone to thepolls in the past 19 months.
Maroistriggered the election on March 5 when it became clear that the Liberals and CAQwould not support her minority government's budget.
Marois took a risk calling the election only 18 months into her party's mandate,hoping the PQ could pull out of its position as a minority government and persuade Quebecers to give them a majority mandate.
However, the Liberals put up a significant fight, polling higher than the PQ for the better part of half of the campaign.
The PQs campaign focused largely on identity politics. However, when the tactic skewed too close to the sovereignty question, some voters pulled away.
At the centre of its platform was thesecular charter legislation, which would bar public-sector workers from wearing overt religious symbols.
The legislationis popular outside urban centres such as Montreal and Quebec City. However, it has been met with fierce opposition by some school boards, health-care institutions and municipalities.
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