With the departure of Bernard Landry as leader of the Parti Quebecois all eyes are on BQ Leader Gilles Duceppe. I am not expert on Quebec politics...well I am no expert on non-Quebec politics, but that doesn't stop me...but my quick take on it is the following. There will not be a Quebec election for two years so there is no need for him to jump now. This all rests on the assumption that his end game is the lead the PQ. Instead the PQ can pick an interim, place-holder leader until MP Duceppe is finished in Ottawa.
The Liberals seem to have Cheshire grin over the prospects of MP Duceppe leaving sooner than later. I am not entirely sure why. Until Adscam MP Duceppe was seen as a detriment not an asset. The surge of popularity in the BQ has more to do with Liberal corruption than with MP Duceppe's leadership. I will grant you in the last 12-16 months MP Duceppe has risen to the occasion but if the BQ numbers do drop (questionable) will the Liberals gain as a result? I guess that remains to be seen but I sense an opportunity for the Conservatives and especially the NDP to gain from any BQ drop.
My gut tells me that Quebec is a lost cause to the Liberals. But remember how I started this post...
