A pivotal night for Quebec and Canada. CTVNews.ca has special live coverage as voters shape the next chapter.
CTV News projects the Parti Québécois will form a minority government in Quebec.
In a major upset for the ruling Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) party, the Parti Québécois (PQ) is shaking up the political landscape in Quebec.
The party hasn’t been in power since 2014 and its leader, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, has vowed to hold a third referendum on Quebec sovereignty in his first term.
Follow along for the latest updates:
CTV News projects a PQ minority government
The Parti Québécois will form a minority government, CTV News projects.

Key details:
- PQ will form minority government, CTV News projects
- Liberals to form official Opposition, CTV News projects
- All leaders win seats – except CAQ’s Fréchette
- CAQ leader makes concession speech
PM Carney congratulates PSPP
Carney's X account initially referred to Plamondon as "Prime Minister-designate" before sending another post, calling him "Premier-designate."
Congratulations, Premier-designate @PaulPlamondon, on your election victory.
— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) October 6, 2026
Building a stronger Québec is core to our mission of building a stronger Canada. I look forward to working with you to support Québec’s businesses and workers impacted by tariffs, create more good jobs,…
Party standings so far
Two hours after the polls closed in Quebec, the PQ has a significant lead, with 54 elected MNAs and leading in five other ridings. The party went into the election with just seven seats.
The Liberals, who will form the official opposition, have won 32 seats so far and are leading in eight other ridings. At dissolution, the party had 18 seats in the legislature.
The Quebec Conservative Party has so far won 17 seats and are leading in two ridings, while Québec solidaire secured seven seats, but are also leading in nine other ridings.
The CAQ has, at this point, been wiped off the map with zero seats as of 10 p.m.

Longest serving MNAs to pass two decades in office

CAQ leader loses her seat
Minutes after making her concession speech, CAQ leader Christine Fréchette has lost her seat, CTV News projects.
With 143 polls reporting, the PQ's Jean Pellerin has secured 27.6 per cent support to win the riding of Trois-Rivières.
Fréchette is in second place with 24.8 per cent support. She did not directly address her political future in her concession speech tonight, but she has previously said that she would stay on as CAQ leader.
The CAQ has shockingly not won a single seat two hours after the polls have closed.

'The failure is mine, not yours': CAQ leader
She left the stage appearing emotional as she made a heart gesture with her hands to the crowd.
CAQ leader to make statement soon

Youngest female MNA elected
Longueuil Mayor Catherine Fournier formerly held that distinction when she was elected in 2016 at 24 years of age. Elsie Lefebvre was elected for the PQ in 2004 when she was 25.
Liberals to form official opposition
The Quebec Liberals will form the official opposition party in the Quebec legislature, CTV News projects.
The decision desk projects that the Liberals could win between 33 and 39 seats tonight, a significant win for the party.
The Liberals went into the 2026 election with 18 seats in the National Assembly, down from the 21 seats they won in the 2022 general election.

Poilievre congratulates PSPP
Poilievre added in a post on X that he's "proud" of Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime, who he said "achieved historic gains" in the province.
As of this writing, the PC is leading or has been elected in 18 seats.
Au nom du Parti conservateur du Canada, je félicite le prochain premier ministre du Québec, @PaulPlamondon, ainsi que tous ceux et celles qui ont gagné la confiance des Québécois ce soir.
— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) October 6, 2026
Je suis particulièrement fier de mon ami de plus de 25 ans, @E_Duhaime, qui a réalisé des…
All leaders win their seats, except Fréchette
Liberal leader Charles Milliard, Parti Québécois leader Paul St. Pierre Plamondon, Quebec Conservative leader Éric Duhaime, and Québéc solidaire leader Ruba Ghazal have all been elected.
CAQ leader Christine Fréchette has not yet been re-elected. It's a tight race currently in her riding of Trois-Rivières with the PQ candidate Jean Pellerin as both are leading with about 29 per cent of the vote (48/169 polls reporting).

Frechette in a fight

Quebec Liberal leader wins seat
This marks the first time Milliard will hold a seat in the National Assembly. Milliard came into the scene after former leader Pablo Rodriquez stepped down from the role amid the alleged vote-buying scandal.

Will CAQ lose party status?

PQ leader re-elected
With his party projected to form the next government, St. Pierre Plamondon is now Quebec's premier-designate.

Mood is festive at PQ headquarters
Party standings so far
In a major early upset, the CAQ has not won any seats.
Full election results are available at on CTV News Montreal's election hub.

Quebec Conservative leader wins his seat
Duhaime has been leader of the party since 2021.
The party has so far won 5 seats.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTV News projects a PQ government
It is not yet clear whether it will be a minority or majority government. A party needs 64 seats to secure a majority government in Quebec.
First Conservative MNA elected
The CPQ expects to pick up enough seats for official party status, 12, after being shut out of prior elections.
Jonathan Poulin was elected in Beauce-Sud, as the second CPQ MNA for Éric Duhaime's party.

Joël Arseneau re-elected

Polls close across Quebec

WATCH LIVE: CTV News Montreal special broadcast at 8 p.m.
The special coverage, also on Crave, on CJAD 800 Radio, and our social media platforms, will have live election results as they come in with the same team of experts, and projections from CTV’s election desk, made up of experts who analyze the votes that are being counted to help project who the winner will be.
Readers can also follow CTVNewsMontreal.ca for the latest updates throughout the evening.

Former PQ leader says separation push could come later

Protesters gather outside PQ watch party
WATCH LIVE: CTV News Montreal special broadcast at 7 p.m.
CTV News Montreal anchor Mutsumi Takahashi will host the one-hour, live pre-show special, featuring insight and analysis from Martine St-Victor, a communications strategist and general manager of Edelman, Sébastien Dallaire, a chief insights officer at Leger Marketing, and David Heurtel, political analyst and former Quebec Liberal cabinet minister.
CTV News Montreal reporters will also provide updates from the five main party headquarters, and CTV News anchor Maya Johnson will have expert analysis from political analyst Raphael Melançon and Rupen Seoni, chief client officer at Environics Analytics.

Former PQ leader predicts minority government
Speaking with CTV Power Play host Vassy Kapelos, he described governing without a majority as “a delicate task,” but said the PQ could build support for individual measures by working with other parties.
Lisée also said people in Quebec want change but attempts to make the campaign about U.S. President Donald Trump did not resonate as it did in the federal election.
“It has been about change and that was the bad news for the outgoing Premier Christine Fréchette,” he said. “She wanted to make this election about Donald Trump, as (Prime Minister Mark) Carney did with great success last year, and it kind of worked for the first week, but the appetite for change has been growing.
“The Trump card didn't work as well for her as it did for Mr. Carney,” Lisée added.
Quebec government denied appeal
In the judgment obtained by CTV News, Healy wrote that the court generally will not interfere with a judge’s temporary decision unless there are exceptional circumstances.
What to watch for as the votes come in
Watch the interview.
45% of Quebecers have voted so far
The agency reported that 25.6 per cent of Quebecers voted in advance polls, compared with 24.8 per cent in the 2022 general election.
Final voter turnout is determined once the votes have been counted or after a judicial recount.
Leaders vote
CAQ leader Christine Fréchette is running in Trois-Rivières.
PQ leader Pierre St-Pierre Plamondon is running in Camille-Laurin in Montreal.
Liberal leader Charles Milliard is running in the Eastern Townships riding of Orford.
Quebec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal is running in Mercier in Montreal.
Conservative leader Éric Duhaime is running in Bellechasse, south of Quebec City.

Voters head to the polls across the country
Watch the video below.
Election could be ‘very devastating’ for Fréchette: analyst
Duhaime votes

Nearly 30% of Quebecers have voted so far
The agency reported that 25.6 per cent of Quebecers voted in advance polls.
Final voter turnout is determined once the votes have been counted or after a judicial recount. It becomes official after the declaration of the election, which takes place four days after the votes are counted, if no request for a judicial recount is made during that period.
Voters express accessibility concerns
It also stated that sites are equipped with tools to help people who may have limitations, including a lighted magnifying glass, a pencil with a grip for easier handling, a clipboard, a braille voting template, large-print posters of candidates and a tool with pictograms to facilitate communication between election officers and people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Will a sovereignty referendum sway voters?
Quebecers line up before stations open
It added that voting today should generally be quick, as there are four times more polling stations than during advance polling.
According to the agency, electors must follow several rules when exercising their right to vote to ensure that poll stations remain neutral.
Some of these rules include not expressing support or opposition for any party or candidate.
Polling stations close at 8 p.m.

Ghazal votes

Milliard votes

'An interesting race': Nanos
Fréchette casts ballot

PSPP 'excited yet calm' while voting

A ‘tight race’ as voters head to the polls
Sovereignty questions loom over Quebec businesses
How to watch the election live on CTV News
Beginning at 7 p.m. on Oct. 5, CTV will air a special election broadcast on Crave, on CTVNewsMontreal.ca, on CJAD 800 Radio, and on our YouTube, TikTok, and X accounts.
Joe Lofaro breaks down all the details for you here.
Voting today? What you need to know
Tom Mulcair: A turning point for Canada
An excerpt from his exclusive column:
I get it, just talking about a complex Quebec general election is enough to send people scrambling for the mute button.
But there really is something unique happening in the run-up to Monday’s vote in La Belle province that other Canadians should keep an eye on. I guess that many of us just shrug our shoulders and say that the threat of separation has been background noise in Canada since the Parti Québécois was first elected exactly 50 years ago in 1976. Who cares, eh?
That would fly in the face of the Canadian constitution and the Supreme Court ruling on secession, but that’s not the type of subtlety that will stop PSPP or the hard-bitten, right-wing nationalists who are the core of his team.
Party platforms 'a drop in the bucket' to solve housing crisis
"All of them, even the suggestion by the Liberals, is can be called bluntly a drop in the bucket," said Friedman. "What we are living now today is a major crisis that is likely to affect young people's life and economic vitality in the coming years, and if any of these platforms will be executed, will be put to work, it will take about four to five years until you will see the first unit."
Friedman said the province needs to return to a policy of constructing social housing.
Watch the video below.
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