Voters head to polls for closely watched Quebec byelection in Arthabaska

Eric Duhaime, Conservative Party of Quebec leader and candidate for the Quebec byelection in the Arthabaska riding is interviewed in Saint-Louis-de-Blandford, Que., Wednesday, July 23, 2025. A byelection is scheduled for the riding on August 11, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

MONTREAL - Voters are heading to the polls today for a closely watched Quebec byelection in which the leader of the provincial Conservative party is vying to win his first legislature seat.

Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime appears to be in a close two-way race with the sovereigntist Parti Québécois candidate in the Quebec riding of Arthabaska.

The byelection was triggered after Coalition Avenir Québec member Éric Lefebvre resigned to run successfully for the Conservative Party of Canada in the last federal election.

The governing Coalition Avenir Québec has held the riding since 2012 but appears poised to lose its third-straight byelection in less than two years.

Duhaime is hoping to enter the national assembly after his party failed to win a seat in the 2022 election.

He's facing off against nine other people including Parti Québécois candidate Alex Boissonneault and the Coalition Avenir Québec's Keven Brasseur.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 11, 2025.

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