2008 Quebec general election explained

Election Name:	2008 Quebec general election
Country:	Quebec
Type:	legislative
Party Colour:	no
Party Name:	no
Previous Election:	2007 Quebec general election
Previous Year:	2007
Outgoing Members:	38th Quebec Legislature
Elected Members:	39th Quebec Legislature
Next Election:	2012 Quebec general election
Next Year:	2012
Seats For Election:	125 seats in the National Assembly of Quebec
Majority Seats:	63
Turnout:	57.43% (13.8%)
Leader1:	Jean Charest
Leader Since1:	April 30, 1998
Leaders Seat1:	Sherbrooke
Last Election1:	48 seats, 33.08%
Seats1:	66
Seat Change1:	18
Popular Vote1:	1,366,046
Percentage1:	42.08%
Swing1:	9.00%
Leader2:	Pauline Marois
Leader Since2:	June 26, 2007
Leaders Seat2:	Charlevoix
Last Election2:	36 seats, 28.35%
Seats2:	51
Seat Change2:	15
Popular Vote2:	1,139,185
Percentage2:	35.17%
Swing2:	6.82%
Leader4:	Mario Dumont
Leader Since4:	May 11, 1994
Leaders Seat4:	Rivière-du-Loup
Last Election4:	41 seats, 30.84%
Seats4:	7
Seat Change4:	34
Popular Vote4:	529,925
Percentage4:	16.37%
Swing4:	14.47%
Leader5:	Françoise David and Amir Khadir (as spokespeople)
Leader Since5:	February 4, 2006
Last Election5:	0 seats, 3.64%
Seats5:	1
Seat Change5:	1
Popular Vote5:	123,061
Percentage5:	3.78%
Swing5:	0.14%
Map Size:	410px
Premier
Before Election:	Jean Charest
After Election:	Jean Charest
Posttitle:	Premier after election

The 2008 Quebec general election was held in the Canadian province of Quebec on December 8, 2008. The Quebec Liberal Party, under incumbent Premier Jean Charest, was re-elected with a majority government, marking the first time since the 1950s (when the Union Nationale of Maurice Duplessis won four consecutive elections) that a party or leader was elected to a third consecutive mandate, and the first time for the Liberals since the 1930s, when Louis-Alexandre Taschereau was Premier.

The 2008 election also marked the first time that Québec solidaire won a seat.

Issues

Charest called the election on November 5, saying he needed a "clear mandate" and a majority to handle the economic storm. He was criticized, however, by the Parti Québécois and the Action démocratique du Québec for calling a snap election to get a majority when they were willing to work with him to fix the economy.^[1]

Most notably, the election was marked by a significant collapse in support for the ADQ. Formerly a relatively minor party, the ADQ had attracted significant protest support in the 2007 election, beating the Parti Québécois to Official Opposition status. In 2008, however, the party's support dropped back to approximately 15 per cent of the popular vote, roughly the same range of support the party attracted before 2007. As a result of this loss of support, Mario Dumont announced in his concession speech that he would step down as party leader.^[2]

In the final days of the election campaign, the concurrent parliamentary confidence dispute became an issue, with Prime Minister Stephen Harper attacking the credibility of a potential Liberal-New Democratic Party coalition government because the Bloc Québécois had pledged to support the coalition on motions of confidence. Both Marois and Dumont called upon Charest, a former leader of the federal Progressive Conservatives, to clarify where he stood on the coalition and on Harper's use of anti-sovereigntist rhetoric in the dispute.^[3] Charest emphasized that the Bloc MPs had been legitimately elected by Quebecers, and stated that "I live in a society in which people can be sovereigntists or federalists, but they respect each other. The same thing should prevail in the federal parliament."^[4]

Media analysts noted that while Charest's Liberals won a majority, the final result was much narrower in both the popular vote and the seat total than polls even just a few days before the election had predicted, because the Liberals only won an eight-seat majority, a result which was widely credited to a late voter swing toward the PQ as a result of Harper's comments.^[5]

Timeline

2007

• March 26 - 38th Quebec general election
• April 4 - Mario Dumont becomes the leader of the Official Opposition.
• April 5 - Swearing in of the liberals members of the National Assembly
• April 12 - Swearing in of the ADQs members of the National Assembly
• April 18 - Swearing in of the Cabinet members
• April 25 - Swearing in of the PQs members of the National Assembly
• May 8 - Resignation of André Boisclair as leader of the Parti Québécois
• May 9 - The opening speech of the 38th National Assembly of Quebec is pronounced by Premier Jean Charest.
• May 10 - François Gendron becomes the interim leader of the Parti Québécois, so the leader of the Second Opposition group.
• May 24 - The budget speech is pronounced by Monique Jérôme-Forget. Both opposition parties announce that they will vote against the budget, causing a crisis in the National Assembly.
• June 1 - Monique Jérôme-Forget adds 111 million dollars to the budget to avoid the holding of a general election. The budgetary policy is approved by 46 votes against 44.
• June 7 - Pierre Duchesne becomes the twenty-eighth Lieutenant Governor of Quebec.
• June 26 - Pauline Marois is elected as leader of the Parti Québécois without opposition.
• August 13 - Resignation of Rosaire Bertrand as MNA of Charlevoix
• September 24 - In a by-election, Pauline Marois is elected MNA of Charlevoix with 59.2% of the vote.
• October 17 - Resignation of Diane Lemieux as MNA of Bourget
• November 15 - Resignation of André Boisclair as MNA of Pointe-aux-Trembles

2008

• March 8 - 97.2% of the liberals delegates support their leader, Jean Charest.
• March 13 - Monique Jérôme-Forget pronounces her second budget speech. Mario Dumont announces that the ADQ will vote for the budget, whereas Pauline Marois announces that the PQ will vote against. Thus, the government is safe.
• March 16 - 94.8% of the ADQ's delegates support their leader, Mario Dumont.
• March 29 - Guy Rainville is elected as leader of the Green Party against Scott McKay.
• April 9 - Resignation of Roch Cholette as MNA of Hull
• May 12 - In by-elections, Maka Kotto, Maryse Gaudreault and Nicole Léger are respectively elected MNAs of Bourget, Hull and Pointe-aux-Trembles. The voter turnout is around 34% in the three electoral districts.
• June 25 - Resignation of Philippe Couillard as MNA of Jean-Talon and swearing in of Yves Bolduc as minister of Health and Social Services
• July 14 - Resignation of Michel Bissonnet as president of the National Assembly
• September 24 - Resignation of Michel Bissonnet as MNA of Jeanne-Mance–Viger
• September 29 - In a by-election, Yves Bolduc is elected MNA of Jean-Talon with 58.5% of the vote.
• October 21 - Election of François Gendron as president of the National Assembly
• October 22 - Resignation of Russell Copeman as MNA of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
• October 23 - ADQ members of the National Assembly André Riedl and Pierre-Michel Auger cross the floor to sit as members of the Liberal caucus.
• November 5 - Premier Jean Charest calls a general election for December 8.
• November 25 - Leaders debate

Opinion polls

width=15%	Polling firm	width=20%	Last date of polling	width=7%	Link	QLP	ADQ	PQ	GPQ	QS	Other
Angus Reid Strategies	December 5, 2008	PDF	42	13	36	3	5	1
Léger Marketing	December 4, 2008	PDF	45	15	32	3	4	1
CROP	December 3, 2008	PDF	45	15	29	6	5	0
Léger Marketing	November 23, 2008	PDF	46	12	34	4	4	0
CROP	November 23, 2008	PDF	45	12	32	5	5	0
Nanos Research	November 22, 2008	PDF	44	12	36	4	4	1
Léger Marketing	November 19, 2008	PDF	44	15	33	4	4	0
CROP	November 13, 2008	DOC	42	15	31	7	4	1
Environics	November 12, 2008	HTML	45	14	39	1	1	0
Léger Marketing	November 10, 2008	PDF	41	14	35	4	4	2
Léger Marketing	October 27, 2008	PDF	42	14	34	4	4	2
CROP	October 27, 2008	DOC	38	17	32	7	5	1
CROP	September 28, 2008	DOC	41	16	32	6	4	0
CROP	August 24, 2008	DOC	42	17	32	6	3	0
CROP	June 23, 2008	DOC	36	17	31	7	8	0
Léger Marketing	June 15, 2008	PDF	42	14	32	7	4	1
CROP	May 26, 2008	PDF	41	14	32	6	6	1
CROP	April 27, 2008	DOC	38	17	29	9	5	1
Léger Marketing	April 20, 2008	PDF	37	18	33	6	4	2
CROP	March 26, 2008	DOC	34	22	30	7	6	1
CROP	February 24, 2008	DOC	35	21	32	7	5	0
CROP	January 27, 2008	DOC	31	24	35	5	4	0
Léger Marketing	January 17, 2008	PDF	33	27	30	5	4	1
CROP	December 2, 2007	DOC	30	26	34	6	3	1
Léger Marketing	November 4, 2007	PDF	31	27	31	5	5	1
CROP	October 28, 2007	DOC	31	28	31	6	4	0
CROP	September 23, 2007	HTML	24	34	30	7	5	0
Léger Marketing	September 8, 2007	PDF	28	30	34	4	2	2
CROP	August 26, 2007	DOC	27	29	33	6	4	1
CROP	June 25, 2007	PDF	27	28	29	9	6	1
Léger Marketing	June 24, 2007	PDF	28	31	32	5	4	0
CROP	June 3, 2007	PDF	28	29	29	8	5	0
CROP	May 28, 2007	HTML	28	32	27	7	5	0
Léger Marketing	May 26, 2007	PDF	28	33	30	4	4	1
CROP	April 29, 2007	PDF	27	32	23	9	7	1
Léger Marketing	March 29, 2007	PDF	31	38	22	5	3	0
Last election	March 26, 2007	HTML	33.1%	30.8%	28.4%	3.9%	3.6%	0.2%

Campaign slogans

• Action démocratique du Québec: Donnez-vous le pouvoir ("Give yourselves the power")
• Parti libéral du Québec: L'économie d'abord OUI ("The economy first YES")
• Parti québécois: Québec gagnant avec Pauline ("Quebec is a winner with Pauline")
• Parti vert du Québec : Votons pour l'avenir ("Let's vote for the future")
• Québec solidaire : Pour un système de santé public / Pour des salaires décents / Pour une souveraineté solidaire / Pour une économie verte et locale / Pour Éole Québec ("For a public health system" / "For decent incomes" / "For an independence in solidarity" / "For a green and local economy" / "For Wind Québec" [Éole Québec is a play on the state-run Hydro-Québec power utility, and refers to the nationalization of the wind energy industry])

Incumbent MNAs not running for re-election

Liberals

• Maurice Clermont, Mille-Îles
• Jean-Marc Fournier, Châteauguay
• Benoît Pelletier, Chapleau

Péquistes

• Maxime Arseneau, Îles-de-la-Madeleine
• Jacques Côté, Dubuc
• Serge Deslières, Beauharnois
• Rita Dionne-Marsolais, Rosemont
• Louise Harel, Hochelaga-Maisonneuve
• Guy Lelièvre, Gaspé

Results

The overall results were:^[6]

|- style="background-color:#CCCCCC;"! rowspan="2" colspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Party! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Party leader! rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;font-size:80%;" | Candi-
dates! colspan="5" style="text-align:center;" | Seats! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | Popular vote|- style="background-color:#CCCCCC;text-align:center;"| 2007| style="font-size:80%;" | Dissol.| 2008| style="font-size:80%;" | Change| %| #| %| style="font-size:80%;" | Change| style="text-align:left;" | Jean Charest| 125| 48| 48| 66| +18| 52.80%| 1,366,046| 42.08%| +9.00%| style="text-align:left;" | Pauline Marois| 125| 36| 36| 51| +15| 40.80%| 1,141,751| 35.17%| +6.82%| style="text-align:left;" | Mario Dumont| 125| 41| 39| 7| -34| 5.60%| 531,358| 16.37%| -14.47%| style="text-align:left;" | Françoise David
Amir Khadir^†| 122| -| -| 1| +1| 0.80%| 122,618| 3.78%| +0.14%| style="text-align:left;" | Guy Rainville| 80| -| -| -| -| -| 70,393| 2.17%| -1.68%| style="text-align:left;" | Éric Tremblay| 19| *| -| -| *| -| 4,227| 0.13%| *| style="text-align:left;" | Pierre Chénier| 23| -| -| -| -| -| 2,727| 0.08%| +0.03% | style="text-align:left;" | Durable| style="text-align:left;" | Sébastien Girard| 1| *| -| -| *| -| 567| 0.02%| * | style="text-align:left;" | Republic of Quebec| style="text-align:left;" | Gilles Paquette| 1| *| -| -| *| -| 140| <0.01%| *| colspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Independents| 30| -| -| -| -| -| 6,506| 0.20%| +0.09%| style="text-align:left;" colspan="4" | Vacant| 2| style="text-align:center;" colspan="5" |  |- style="font-weight:bold;"| style="text-align:left;" colspan="3" | Total| 651| 125| 125| 125| -| 100%| 3,246,333| 100%|-| style="text-align:left;" colspan="13" | Notes:

"Change" refers to change from previous election.

^† The party designated David and Khadir as co-spokespeople; the de jure leader recognized by the Directeur général des éléctions was Benoît Renaud.

* Party did not nominate candidates in the previous election.|-|}

Synopsis of results

Results by riding - 2008 Quebec general election^{[7] [8] [9]}

Riding	Winning party												Turnout ^[10]	Votes^[11]
Name	2007		1st place		Votes	Share	Margin #	Margin %	2nd place		3rd place			PLQ	PQ	ADQ	QS	PVQ		Other	Total
Abitibi-Est		PQ		PLQ	8,942	45.74%	515	2.63%		PQ		ADQ	58.73%	8,942	8,427	1,742	438	–	–	–	19,549
Abitibi-Ouest		PQ		PQ	10,597	57.32%	5,280	28.56%		PLQ		ADQ	57.06%	5,317	10,597	2,198	–	–	–	375	18,487
Acadie		PLQ		PLQ	15,145	67.16%	10,427	46.24%		PQ		ADQ	46.91%	15,145	4,718	982	958	747	–	–	22,550
Anjou		PLQ		PLQ	13,082	50.44%	4,152	16.01%		PQ		ADQ	58.88%	13,082	8,930	2,252	944	727	–	–	25,935
Argenteuil		PLQ		PLQ	10,843	49.58%	3,490	15.96%		PQ		ADQ	54.17%	10,843	7,353	2,457	456	760	–	–	21,869
Arthabaska		ADQ		PLQ	13,304	42.55%	4,510	14.43%		PQ		ADQ	63.96%	13,304	8,794	7,777	697	693	–	–	31,265
Beauce-Nord		ADQ		ADQ	12,633	49.92%	3,021	11.94%		PLQ		PQ	63.86%	9,612	2,297	12,633	264	384	117	–	25,307
Beauce-Sud		ADQ		PLQ	12,108	43.62%	570	2.05%		ADQ		PQ	59.99%	12,108	2,947	11,538	315	536	311	–	27,755
Beauharnois		PQ		PQ	12,349	47.15%	3,538	13.51%		PLQ		ADQ	61.00%	8,811	12,349	3,311	681	570	467	–	26,189
Bellechasse		ADQ		PLQ	10,530	47.66%	2,932	13.27%		ADQ		PQ	64.35%	10,530	3,450	7,598	518	–	–	–	22,096
Berthier		ADQ		PQ	13,776	42.50%	5,341	16.48%		PLQ		ADQ	60.43%	8,435	13,776	8,358	934	911	–	–	32,414
Bertrand		PQ		PQ	15,263	49.12%	4,636	14.92%		PLQ		ADQ	58.04%	10,627	15,263	3,496	851	834	–	–	31,071
Blainville		ADQ		PQ	13,989	40.52%	2,772	8.03%		PLQ		ADQ	60.91%	11,217	13,989	7,571	789	954	–	–	34,520
Bonaventure		PLQ		PLQ	10,707	64.23%	5,863	35.17%		PQ		ADQ	58.02%	10,707	4,844	586	533	–	–	–	16,670
Borduas		PQ		PQ	13,329	47.66%	4,204	15.03%		PLQ		ADQ	65.87%	9,125	13,329	3,430	966	904	–	214	27,968
Bourassa-Sauvé		PLQ		PLQ	13,950	61.33%	7,839	34.46%		PQ		ADQ	47.68%	13,950	6,111	1,947	738	–	–	–	22,746
Bourget		PQ		PQ	13,007	50.19%	5,023	19.38%		PLQ		ADQ	55.56%	7,984	13,007	2,677	1,180	939	–	127	25,914
Brome-Missisquoi		PLQ		PLQ	15,006	49.24%	6,681	21.92%		PQ		ADQ	60.39%	15,006	8,325	5,073	884	1,012	173	–	30,473
Chambly		ADQ		PQ	16,049	40.01%	1,564	3.90%		PLQ		ADQ	66.62%	14,485	16,049	6,455	1,167	1,200	–	758	40,114
Champlain		ADQ		PQ	12,317	40.98%	2,024	6.73%		PLQ		ADQ	64.38%	10,293	12,317	6,582	654	–	211	–	30,057
Chapleau		PLQ		PLQ	13,968	54.71%	7,408	29.01%		PQ		ADQ	47.96%	13,968	6,560	3,194	609	1,032	118	51	25,532
Charlesbourg		ADQ		PLQ	14,196	42.36%	4,382	13.08%		ADQ		PQ	65.79%	14,196	8,449	9,814	1,053	–	–	–	33,512
Charlevoix		PQ		PQ	10,510	52.21%	4,269	21.21%		PLQ		ADQ	61.01%	6,241	10,510	2,560	343	325	150	–	20,129
Châteauguay		PLQ		PLQ	13,637	41.49%	495	1.51%		PQ		ADQ	58.26%	13,637	13,142	4,091	703	967	–	327	32,867
Chauveau		ADQ		ADQ	14,029	42.75%	2,605	7.94%		PLQ		PQ	61.63%	11,424	6,559	14,029	801	–	–	–	32,813
Chicoutimi		PQ		PQ	13,400	45.96%	1,282	4.40%		PLQ		ADQ	63.71%	12,118	13,400	2,465	1,174	–	–	–	29,157
Chomedey		PLQ		PLQ	16,702	66.12%	11,392	45.10%		PQ		ADQ	45.21%	16,702	5,310	1,936	556	625	–	133	25,262
Chutes-de-la-Chaudière		ADQ		ADQ	15,536	44.77%	4,879	14.06%		PLQ		PQ	67.16%	10,657	7,437	15,536	1,070	–	–	–	34,700
Crémazie		PQ		PQ	12,972	45.13%	1,412	4.91%		PLQ		ADQ	62.29%	11,560	12,972	1,808	1,627	776	–	–	28,743
D'Arcy-McGee		PLQ		PLQ	14,087	88.75%	13,421	84.55%		PVQ		PQ	38.89%	14,087	564	292	264	666	–	–	15,873
Deux-Montagnes		ADQ		PQ	11,961	43.14%	2,981	10.75%		PLQ		ADQ	61.03%	8,980	11,961	4,986	632	1,168	–	–	27,727
Drummond		ADQ		PQ	11,581	34.40%	615	1.83%		PLQ		ADQ	59.30%	10,966	11,581	9,826	1,293	–	–	–	33,666
Dubuc		PQ		PLQ	9,695	42.78%	424	1.87%		PQ		ADQ	60.65%	9,695	9,271	2,789	708	–	199	–	22,662
Duplessis		PQ		PQ	9,622	52.35%	3,322	18.07%		PLQ		ADQ	50.26%	6,300	9,622	1,535	469	454	–	–	18,380
Fabre		PLQ		PLQ	15,349	45.50%	2,924	8.67%		PQ		ADQ	57.08%	15,349	12,425	4,024	918	1,021	–	–	33,737
Frontenac		PLQ		PLQ	11,785	56.71%	6,933	33.36%		PQ		ADQ	63.58%	11,785	4,852	3,539	423	–	–	183	20,782
Gaspé		PQ		PLQ	8,947	56.25%	2,662	16.74%		PQ		ADQ	58.17%	8,947	6,285	499	175	–	–	–	15,906
Gatineau		PLQ		PLQ	14,566	59.80%	7,399	30.38%		PQ		ADQ	49.48%	14,566	7,167	2,318	–	–	–	306	24,357
Gouin		PQ		PQ	10,276	41.18%	2,329	9.33%		QS		PLQ	58.03%	4,972	10,276	895	7,947	753	–	110	24,953
Groulx		ADQ		PQ	11,226	37.62%	403	1.35%		PLQ		ADQ	61.33%	10,823	11,226	6,036	701	955	–	102	29,843
Hochelaga-Maisonneuve		PQ		PQ	10,530	54.31%	6,415	33.08%		PLQ		QS	47.82%	4,115	10,530	1,303	2,508	817	–	117	19,390
Hull		PLQ		PLQ	11,651	51.27%	4,110	18.09%		PQ		QS	47.72%	11,651	7,541	1,309	1,994	–	–	231	22,726
Huntingdon		ADQ		PLQ	11,329	44.33%	4,305	16.84%		PQ		ADQ	57.81%	11,329	7,024	6,431	774	–	–	–	25,558
Iberville		ADQ		PQ	11,698	41.28%	2,623	9.26%		PLQ		ADQ	61.62%	9,075	11,698	6,085	605	876	–	–	28,339
Îles-de-la-Madeleine		PQ		PLQ	3,510	49.85%	316	4.49%		PQ		PVQ	66.35%	3,510	3,194	121	87	129	–	–	7,041
Jacques-Cartier		PLQ		PLQ	20,433	80.85%	18,536	73.35%		PVQ		PQ	52.77%	20,433	1,522	969	364	1,897	–	87	25,272
Jean-Lesage		ADQ		PLQ	11,674	41.68%	4,203	15.01%		PQ		ADQ	58.60%	11,674	7,471	7,307	1,238	–	316	–	28,006
Jean-Talon		PLQ		PLQ	13,853	49.71%	4,861	17.44%		PQ		ADQ	69.07%	13,853	8,992	2,546	1,409	1,065	–	–	27,865
Jeanne-Mance-Viger		PLQ		PLQ	16,433	73.05%	13,054	58.03%		PQ		ADQ	46.95%	16,433	3,379	1,726	554	–	281	124	22,497
Johnson		ADQ		PQ	10,973	40.21%	2,502	9.17%		PLQ		ADQ	63.02%	8,471	10,973	6,297	634	914	–	–	27,289
Joliette		ADQ		PQ	14,666	46.09%	5,491	17.26%		PLQ		ADQ	62.60%	9,175	14,666	6,185	1,549	–	246	–	31,821
Jonquière		PQ		PQ	13,077	47.68%	2,710	9.88%		PLQ		ADQ	62.52%	10,367	13,077	2,913	1,068	–	–	–	27,425
Kamouraska-Témiscouata		PLQ		PLQ	11,048	53.70%	6,612	32.14%		ADQ		PQ	60.55%	11,048	4,351	4,436	604	–	134	–	20,573
Labelle		PQ		PQ	13,255	53.50%	6,078	24.53%		PLQ		ADQ	55.01%	7,177	13,255	2,837	755	752	–	–	24,776
Lac-Saint-Jean		PQ		PQ	14,536	55.62%	6,711	25.68%		PLQ		ADQ	63.20%	7,825	14,536	2,764	527	483	–	–	26,135
LaFontaine		PLQ		PLQ	14,021	69.76%	10,181	50.65%		PQ		ADQ	51.16%	14,021	3,840	1,306	383	549	–	–	20,099
La Peltrie		ADQ		ADQ	13,461	39.17%	436	1.27%		PLQ		PQ	65.36%	13,025	6,988	13,461	888	–	–	–	34,362
La Pinière		PLQ		PLQ	17,480	61.44%	10,434	36.67%		PQ		ADQ	52.17%	17,480	7,046	2,822	971	–	–	131	28,450
Laporte		PLQ		PLQ	12,823	48.97%	4,048	15.46%		PQ		ADQ	58.05%	12,823	8,775	2,472	954	1,162	–	–	26,186
La Prairie		ADQ		PQ	16,382	44.83%	2,704	7.40%		PLQ		ADQ	63.62%	13,678	16,382	5,178	760	–	392	150	36,540
L'Assomption		ADQ		PQ	15,438	42.77%	4,090	11.33%		PLQ		ADQ	63.21%	11,348	15,438	6,938	1,090	940	–	341	36,095
Laurier-Dorion		PLQ		PLQ	9,769	42.90%	2,069	9.09%		PQ		QS	49.16%	9,769	7,700	943	2,963	1,090	86	219	22,770
Laval-des-Rapides		PLQ		PLQ	11,757	44.07%	1,365	5.12%		PQ		ADQ	55.11%	11,757	10,392	2,722	766	683	112	246	26,678
Laviolette		PLQ		PLQ	11,667	59.06%	6,224	31.51%		PQ		ADQ	58.72%	11,667	5,443	2,127	517	–	–	–	19,754
Lévis		ADQ		PLQ	12,646	38.65%	1,447	4.42%		ADQ		PQ	64.13%	12,646	7,438	11,199	1,438	–	–	–	32,721
Lotbinière		ADQ		ADQ	9,659	43.98%	2,082	9.48%		PLQ		PQ	65.01%	7,577	4,238	9,659	488	–	–	–	21,962
Louis-Hébert		PLQ		PLQ	17,650	48.85%	7,137	19.75%		PQ		ADQ	70.35%	17,650	10,513	5,872	1,031	1,068	–	–	36,134
Marguerite-Bourgeoys		PLQ		PLQ	14,490	66.19%	9,740	44.49%		PQ		ADQ	48.09%	14,490	4,750	1,899	752	–	–	–	21,891
Marguerite-D'Youville		ADQ		PQ	14,533	39.75%	1,414	3.87%		PLQ		ADQ	71.39%	13,119	14,533	6,750	1,064	1,097	–	–	36,563
Marie-Victorin		PQ		PQ	11,026	51.56%	4,841	22.64%		PLQ		ADQ	53.29%	6,185	11,026	2,369	957	665	–	182	21,384
Marquette		PLQ		PLQ	13,471	56.21%	7,020	29.29%		PQ		ADQ	49.09%	13,471	6,451	2,062	588	1,308	–	86	23,966
Maskinongé		ADQ		PLQ	13,429	42.25%	2,441	7.68%		PQ		ADQ	64.25%	13,429	10,988	6,259	708	–	397	–	31,781
Masson		ADQ		PQ	18,037	50.68%	9,863	27.71%		PLQ		ADQ	57.10%	8,174	18,037	7,466	716	948	–	251	35,592
Matane		PQ		PQ	9,589	58.01%	4,086	24.72%		PLQ		ADQ	59.60%	5,503	9,589	1,117	320	–	–	–	16,529
Matapédia		PQ		PQ	8,802	51.89%	2,980	17.57%		PLQ		ADQ	57.49%	5,822	8,802	1,942	398	–	–	–	16,964
Mégantic-Compton		PLQ		PLQ	9,204	45.09%	2,034	9.97%		PQ		ADQ	60.70%	9,204	7,170	3,268	769	–	–	–	20,411
Mercier		PQ		QS	8,597	37.89%	810	3.57%		PQ		PLQ	56.02%	4,842	7,787	565	8,597	818	–	83	22,692
Mille-Îles		PLQ		PLQ	15,628	46.76%	3,456	10.34%		PQ		ADQ	60.66%	15,628	12,172	3,585	901	905	230	–	33,421
Mirabel		ADQ		PQ	13,700	47.41%	6,493	22.47%		PLQ		ADQ	58.65%	7,207	13,700	6,522	621	847	–	–	28,897
Montmagny-L'Islet		ADQ		PLQ	10,027	51.78%	4,395	22.69%		ADQ		PQ	61.28%	10,027	3,058	5,632	293	356	–	–	19,366
Montmorency		ADQ		PLQ	12,536	36.53%	1,101	3.21%		ADQ		PQ	64.48%	12,536	8,788	11,435	711	690	–	153	34,313
Mont-Royal		PLQ		PLQ	12,234	76.32%	10,378	64.74%		PQ		PVQ	38.79%	12,234	1,856	557	577	737	–	69	16,030
Nelligan		PLQ		PLQ	18,251	72.19%	14,595	57.73%		PQ		PVQ	47.04%	18,251	3,656	1,434	379	1,562	–	–	25,282
Nicolet-Yamaska		ADQ		PQ	8,131	35.24%	175	0.76%		PLQ		ADQ	67.38%	7,956	8,131	6,044	940	–	–	–	23,071
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce		PLQ		PLQ	11,475	67.97%	9,045	53.57%		PVQ		PQ	43.02%	11,475	2,307	483	–	2,430	64	124	16,883
Orford		PLQ		PLQ	14,709	43.40%	2,193	6.47%		PQ		ADQ	61.65%	14,709	12,516	4,516	1,128	1,026	–	–	33,895
Outremont		PLQ		PLQ	10,569	54.21%	5,649	28.97%		PQ		QS	48.49%	10,569	4,920	577	2,228	1,204	–	–	19,498
Papineau		PLQ		PLQ	13,786	51.10%	5,112	18.95%		PQ		ADQ	48.94%	13,786	8,674	2,825	805	795	–	92	26,977
Pointe-aux-Trembles		PQ		PQ	12,851	56.87%	7,271	32.17%		PLQ		ADQ	56.66%	5,580	12,851	2,535	664	733	159	77	22,599
Pontiac		PLQ		PLQ	12,960	66.10%	9,409	47.99%		PQ		ADQ	41.37%	12,960	3,551	1,225	809	940	–	123	19,608
Portneuf		ADQ		PLQ	11,205	39.63%	1,706	6.03%		ADQ		PQ	63.63%	11,205	6,631	9,499	938	–	–	–	28,273
Prévost		ADQ		PQ	14,946	44.34%	5,224	15.50%		PLQ		ADQ	57.74%	9,722	14,946	7,057	1,079	902	–	–	33,706
René-Lévesque		PQ		PQ	10,748	58.43%	5,866	31.89%		PLQ		ADQ	54.43%	4,882	10,748	2,250	516	–	–	–	18,396
Richelieu		PQ		PQ	11,591	46.99%	3,039	12.32%		PLQ		ADQ	61.75%	8,552	11,591	3,126	705	693	–	–	24,667
Richmond		PLQ		PLQ	11,658	51.50%	5,123	22.63%		PQ		ADQ	63.02%	11,658	6,535	3,682	760	–	–	–	22,635
Rimouski		PQ		PQ	12,973	48.45%	3,549	13.26%		PLQ		ADQ	62.08%	9,424	12,973	3,410	967	–	–	–	26,774
Rivière-du-Loup		ADQ		ADQ	11,115	51.77%	5,320	24.78%		PLQ		PQ	63.98%	5,795	3,048	11,115	400	513	597	–	21,468
Robert-Baldwin		PLQ		PLQ	17,078	81.07%	15,476	73.47%		PQ		PVQ	41.52%	17,078	1,602	877	375	1,059	–	74	21,065
Roberval		PQ		PQ	12,522	46.42%	1,825	6.77%		PLQ		ADQ	60.63%	10,697	12,522	2,630	561	–	–	567	26,977
Rosemont		PQ		PQ	15,220	50.66%	5,663	18.85%		PLQ		QS	58.67%	9,557	15,220	1,891	2,470	816	–	88	30,042
Rousseau		PQ		PQ	16,513	56.77%	10,019	34.45%		PLQ		ADQ	54.02%	6,494	16,513	4,774	709	595	–	–	29,085
Rouyn-Noranda-Témiscamingue		PQ		PLQ	10,358	42.30%	1,754	7.16%		PQ		ADQ	57.56%	10,358	8,604	4,111	1,413	–	–	–	24,486
Sainte-Marie-Saint-Jacques		PQ		PQ	9,236	46.62%	3,646	18.40%		PLQ		QS	47.24%	5,590	9,236	796	3,051	1,062	–	76	19,811
Saint-François		PLQ		PLQ	13,172	46.68%	1,346	4.77%		PQ		ADQ	62.56%	13,172	11,826	2,240	769	–	210	–	28,217
Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne		PLQ		PLQ	10,552	45.85%	2,017	8.76%		PQ		QS	44.76%	10,552	8,535	1,326	1,471	985	–	146	23,015
Saint-Hyacinthe		ADQ		PQ	11,822	38.07%	213	0.69%		PLQ		ADQ	63.44%	11,609	11,822	5,693	956	975	–	–	31,055
Saint-Jean		ADQ		PQ	13,534	39.20%	914	2.65%		PLQ		ADQ	62.01%	12,620	13,534	6,263	767	1,035	118	189	34,526
Saint-Laurent		PLQ		PLQ	15,663	74.39%	12,158	57.74%		PQ		ADQ	40.89%	15,663	3,505	1,009	731	–	–	147	21,055
Saint-Maurice		ADQ		PQ	8,835	41.41%	653	3.06%		PLQ		ADQ	59.50%	8,182	8,835	3,161	432	449	279	–	21,338
Shefford		ADQ		ADQ	11,271	34.63%	70	0.22%		PLQ		PQ	58.88%	11,201	8,019	11,271	1,085	789	181	–	32,546
Sherbrooke		PLQ		PLQ	13,694	45.24%	2,314	7.64%		PQ		ADQ	62.61%	13,694	11,380	2,074	1,948	1,016	158	–	30,270
Soulanges		PLQ		PLQ	11,561	46.29%	2,332	9.34%		PQ		ADQ	59.14%	11,561	9,229	2,992	459	736	–	–	24,977
Taillon		PQ		PQ	15,031	46.35%	4,340	13.38%		PLQ		ADQ	58.63%	10,691	15,031	3,889	1,374	1,094	–	349	32,428
Taschereau		PQ		PQ	11,768	44.22%	3,923	14.74%		PLQ		ADQ	56.96%	7,845	11,768	3,563	2,241	1,048	–	149	26,614
Terrebonne		ADQ		PQ	15,475	45.22%	6,061	17.71%		PLQ		ADQ	60.47%	9,414	15,475	7,381	892	1,056	–	–	34,218
Trois-Rivières		ADQ		PLQ	9,129	40.10%	960	4.22%		PQ		ADQ	60.46%	9,129	8,169	4,241	714	515	–	–	22,768
Ungava		PQ		PQ	4,119	47.30%	1,104	12.68%		PLQ		ADQ	36.09%	3,015	4,119	918	439	–	218	–	8,709
Vachon		PQ		PQ	13,312	48.64%	4,477	16.36%		PLQ		ADQ	61.48%	8,835	13,312	3,742	613	866	–	–	27,368
Vanier		ADQ		PLQ	13,077	38.31%	469	1.37%		ADQ		PQ	62.20%	13,077	7,521	12,608	932	–	–	–	34,138
Vaudreuil		PLQ		PLQ	15,827	54.02%	7,026	23.98%		PQ		ADQ	57.33%	15,827	8,801	2,599	543	1,086	305	140	29,301
Verchères		PQ		PQ	15,664	55.42%	9,200	32.55%		PLQ		ADQ	64.59%	6,464	15,664	4,377	749	845	–	164	28,263
Verdun		PLQ		PLQ	11,223	47.70%	2,909	12.36%		PQ		ADQ	50.62%	11,223	8,314	1,411	1,215	1,087	277	–	23,527
Viau		PLQ		PLQ	10,705	58.60%	5,922	32.42%		PQ		ADQ	44.52%	10,705	4,783	1,186	915	678	–	–	18,267
Vimont		PLQ		PLQ	16,217	47.78%	3,960	11.67%		PQ		ADQ	60.35%	16,217	12,257	3,932	1,537	–	–	–	33,943
Westmount-Saint-Louis		PLQ		PLQ	11,108	75.17%	9,581	64.83%		PQ		PVQ	36.81%	11,108	1,527	434	615	1,094	–	–	14,778

= open seat

= turnout is above provincial average

= winning candidate was in previous Legislature

= incumbent had switched allegiance

= previously incumbent in another riding

= not incumbent; was previously elected to the Legislature

= incumbency arose from byelection gain

= other incumbents renominated

= previously an MP in the House of Commons of Canada

= multiple candidates

Seats that changed hands

Elections to the National Assembly – seats won/lost by party, 2007–2008

Party		2007	Gain from (loss to)								2008
			PLQ		PQ		ADQ		QS
48			5		13				66
36		(5)			21			(1)	51
41		(13)		(21)					7
–			1						1
Total		125	–	(18)	6	(21)	34	–	–	(1)	125

Summary analysis

Party candidates in 2nd place

Party in 1st place		Party in 2nd place					Total
		Lib	PQ	ADQ	QS	PVQ
	54	9		3	66
50			1		51
7					7
	1				1
Total		57	55	9	1	3	125

Candidates ranked 1st to 5th place, by party

Parties	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
	66	57	2
	51	55	19
	7	9	92	11	6
	1	1	7	73	39
		3	5	37	35
				1	10
				1	3
				1	2
				1

Source !!colspan="6"

Party
align="center"	Lib	align="center"	PQ	align="center"	ADQ	align="center"	QS	Total
Seats retained	Incumbents returned	43	27	6		76
	Open seats held - new MNAs	5	2	1		8
	Open seats held - previous MNA returned		1			1
Seats changing hands	Incumbents defeated - new MNAs	9	18		1	28
	Incumbents defeated - previous MNAs returned	6	3			9
	Open seats gained	3				3
Total		66	51	7	1	125

See also

• 39th National Assembly of Quebec
• Politics of Quebec
• List of premiers of Quebec
• List of leaders of the Official Opposition (Quebec)
• National Assembly of Quebec
• Timeline of Quebec history
• Political parties in Quebec

External links

• Results by party (total votes and seats won)
• Results for all ridings
• DemocraticSPACE 39e élection générale du Québec
• Official election site by Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec
• Predictions HKDP - Electoral Scenario Creator
• TrendLines Research Chart Tracking of 2008 Quebec MNA & Federal Riding Projection models
• Quebec Politique.com
• Election Almanac - Quebec Provincial Election

Notes and References

1. News: CBC News . Quebec premier seeks 'clear mandate' in calling Dec. 8 election . CBC . November 5, 2008 .
2. News: Dumont to step down after ADQ defeat. Lianne Elliott. December 9, 2008. CBC News. December 9, 2008.
3. News: Quebec politicians unimpressed by Harper speech to Canadians . Canadian Press . December 3, 2008 . December 3, 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081208044943/http://www.680news.com/news/national/more.jsp?content=n1203178A . December 8, 2008 .
4. http://www.cbc.ca/news/quebecvotes2008/story/2008/12/04/qv-sovereignty1204.html Charest warns against Quebec-bashing in Parliament crisis
5. http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/viewpoints/story.html?id=b6a580e3-e19d-4c3d-b117-58223b3e80ef "This has been a great year for Jean Charest"
6. Web site: Résultats officiels par parti politique pour l'ensemble des circonscriptions . Directeur général des élections du Québec . February 3, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131021205440/http://dgeq.qc.ca/francais/provincial/resultats-electoraux/elections-generales.php?e=3#s . October 21, 2013 . dead . mdy-all .
7. Web site: Élections québécoises de 2008. French. 2008 Quebec elections. Drouilly. Pierre. December 4, 2017. donneesquebec.ca . Atlas des élections au Québec.
8. Web site: Les membres de l'Assemblée nationale par circonscription. French. National Assembly members by riding. . National Assembly of Quebec. May 12, 2024.
9. Web site: Les résultats électoraux depuis 1867. French. Electoral results since 1867. . National Assembly of Quebec. May 12, 2024.
10. including spoilt ballots
11. All parties with more than 1% of the vote are shown individually. Independent candidates and other minor parties are aggregated separately. Parties are presented in the order shown on EQ data.