Citoyens au pouvoir du Québec
LeaderStéphane Lévesque (interim)
Founded2011 (2011)
Headquarters2500, rue Jean-Perrin, bureau 201
Québec (Québec)
G2C 1X1
IdeologyDirect democracy
Anti-public health measures
Political positionFar-right (disputed)[1]
Website
www.citoyensaupouvoir.ca

Citoyens au pouvoir du Québec (English: Citizens in Power of Quebec) is a minor political party in the Canadian province of Quebec. The Party gave its support to the Anti-mask movement during the COVID-19 pandemic[2] and was accused of having ties with far-right group La Meute.[3][4][5]

Platform

The main policy point in the party's platform is the creation of a constituent assembly via random draw which will help "give freedom to citizens to decide on the type of society, state and government they want". They advocate for elected deputy's duty to consult their fellow citizens and vote according to their constituency's opinions instead of their party line. The party proposes the establishment of direct democracy, through referendums initiated by the citizens, on the model in use in Switzerland.

History

The party was founded in 2011 under the name Coalition pour la constituante (Coalition for a constituent assembly) when the Mouvement des Sans-Parti issued its manifesto, signed by over 500 supporters. It became officially registered under the Election Act in June 2012[6] and it first ran candidates in the September 2012 election. The party changed its name in 2013 to Parti des sans parti (Party of people without a party), then in 2015 to Sans parti – Citoyens constituants (Without a party - Constituent citizens) and again in 2016 to its present name, Citoyens au pouvoir du Québec (Citizens in power of Quebec).[6] A renewed registration was issued by the Chief Electoral Officer in 2019.[7] Although the party has a leader as required by the Election Act, its direct democracy used to render this role obsolete and it used spokespersons instead and its candidates were called mandataries. In 2019, it adopted a more standard model with leader and candidates.

Under the leadership of Stéphane Blais, the party took positions opposing health measures aimed at combatting the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, and has been accused of promoting COVID-19 misinformation in Canada. [8]

In May 2021, Blais resigned as party leader and Stéphane Lévesque was named interim leader.[9] In October 2021, Lévesque announced he was discussing with party members the future of the party. Lévesque provided party membership with three options: the continued survival of the party, merging with an existing party, or the dissolution of the party.[10]

Spokespersons

  • Marc Fafard, June 2012-September 2012
  • Daniel Guersan, 2012-2013
  • Frank Malenfant, 2013–2016
  • Bernard Gauthier, 2016-2017
  • Stéphane Blais, 2018-2021

Election results

General election Name # of candidates # of elected candidates Popular vote % of popular vote
2012 Coalition pour la constituante 29 0 5,197 0.12%
2014 Parti des sans parti 5 0 1,291 0.03%
2018 Citoyens au pouvoir du Québec 56 0 13,768 0.35%

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ "Le nombre d'évènements liés à l'extrême droite explose". La Presse (in French). 14 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  2. ↑ Bélair-Cirino, Marco (19 September 2020). "Qui sont les antimasques?". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  3. ↑ "Au Québec, l'extrême droite cherche à surfer sur Charlottesville". Le Monde.fr (in French). 21 August 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "Des politiciens dans La Meute". Le Soleil (in French). 22 August 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  5. ↑ "Des appuis politiques pour La Meute?". Ricochet.
  6. 1 2 Register of authorized political entities of Québec (archived, 2018)
  7. ↑ Register of authorized political entities of Québec
  8. ↑ Facal, Joseph (5 March 2021). "Mesures sanitaires | Une fondation proche de complotistes intente une vaste action judiciaire". La Presse (in French). Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  9. ↑ "Citoyens au Pouvoir du Québec". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  10. ↑ "L'avenir du parti Citoyens au Pouvoir du Québec". Citoyens au Pouvoir du Québec. Facebook.
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