Ottawa residents who cross the river into Gatineau daily, or who simply watch Quebec's politics ripple into the National Capital Region, had reason to tune into the province's final leaders' debate on Wednesday, September 23, 2026. The debate took place in Montreal and was hosted by Radio-Canada, giving voters one last head-to-head look at the field before Quebecers go to the polls on October 5, 2026.
Who was on stage
Five party leaders took part: Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette, Quebec Liberal Leader Charles Milliard, Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal, Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, and Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime. With the campaign in its final stretch, the format left little room for anyone to hold back.
Health care turned personal
One of the sharper exchanges came on health care, where Fréchette had promised universal access to a family doctor. St-Pierre Plamondon dismissed the pledge as "disrespectful of people's intelligence," arguing it oversold what any government could realistically deliver in the near term. The line captured the tone of a debate where rivals were willing to call out each other's promises as unrealistic rather than simply compare platforms.
The referendum price tag
St-Pierre Plamondon also used his time to defend the Parti Québécois's sovereignty plank, telling viewers he would commit $130 million in government spending to organize a referendum. Putting a dollar figure on the process gave opponents an opening to question priorities at a moment when affordability has dominated the campaign, and it kept the sovereignty question alive even as other leaders tried to steer the conversation toward cost of living.
A baby at an encampment became a flashpoint
Perhaps the most striking moment of the night had nothing to do with policy papers. A baby discovered at a homeless encampment in east Montreal came up during the debate, and leaders used it to underline just how far the province's affordability and homelessness problems have gone. The case gave the abstract debate over housing costs a human face and pushed leaders to address homelessness directly rather than treat it as a side issue to the economy.
Why it matters this side of the river
Decisions made in Quebec City after October 5 on health care funding, housing policy or provincial spending can shape daily life for the National Capital Region just as much as anything decided at Ottawa City Hall. ottown has been tracking how the campaign is playing out on this side of the river, including how homelessness and daycare access have already surfaced as cross-border concerns.
What led here
This debate followed a campaign that had largely avoided reopening old fights: ottown's earlier report noted that Bill 21 and Bill 96 stayed off the table this time around, with leaders instead focused on cost-of-living and housing questions. Those same pressures were already visible on this side of the river, where ottown's earlier report covered an Outaouais daycare provider calling Quebec's new child-care registration portal a "complete fiasco."
Sources: Lethbridge Herald (Canadian Press), paNOW (Canadian Press)
