Quebec’s lieutenant-governor will not attend the swearing-in ceremony of Paul St-Pierre Plamondon’s new cabinet on Wednesday, marking a symbolic shift amid the Parti Québécois (PQ) leader’s push to reduce the monarchy’s role in the province. The absence underscores broader challenges surrounding Quebec’s ties to the Crown and the Canadian constitutional framework.
Following the province’s October 5 election, the new cohort of Quebec lawmakers chose not to swear allegiance to King Charles III, instead pledging loyalty solely to the Quebec people. This outcome was enabled by a 2022 provincial law permitting elected officials to forgo the traditional oath to the monarch—a move currently facing constitutional challenges. None of the 127 members of the National Assembly are expected to take the oath to the King this session.
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon has pledged to go further by introducing legislation to abolish the office of lieutenant-governor, calling it an outdated symbol of British colonial heritage. In a letter to Lieutenant-Governor Manon Jeannotte, he requested she refrain from attending the swearing-in ceremony, asserting the PQ’s commitment to ending the monarchy’s role in Quebec’s democratic institutions and civil society. Quebec’s secretary-general will instead officiate the ceremony, with Ms. Jeannotte signing new ministers’ appointment letters remotely.
The lieutenant-governor’s spokesperson confirmed her absence, emphasizing her desire not to be the focus of attention and her commitment to constitutional continuity. Meanwhile, Governor-General Louise Arbour recently expressed skepticism about the PQ’s authority to eliminate the office of lieutenant-governor, citing constitutional constraints that govern Canada’s public institutions.
Constitutional experts have widely described any unilateral abolition of the lieutenant-governor’s office as unconstitutional, anticipating inevitable court challenges. Patrick Taillon, a constitutional law professor at Laval University, described the lieutenant-governor’s absence as mainly symbolic, noting that official duties will continue uninterrupted.
Further legal scrutiny is underway regarding the 2022 law allowing Quebec legislators to omit the oath of allegiance to the monarch. On Tuesday, a Quebec Superior Court judge heard arguments from opponents who contend the province lacks the power to amend constitutional oaths unilaterally. Lawrence David, a constitutional law professor at the University of Ottawa, is seeking an emergency injunction to suspend the law, arguing that bills passed by legislators who have not sworn allegiance to the Crown are legally invalid. Lawyers for the Quebec government countered that such a suspension would force legislators to relinquish sincerely held political beliefs, a compromise that should not be mandated.
Justice Ian Demers is expected to issue a ruling on the matter at a later date.
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon has expressed pride in the law and his broader agenda, invoking a saying attributed to Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Critics argue the PQ is deliberately provoking a constitutional crisis to strengthen support for a future independence referendum, which Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon has said he intends to hold after the U.S. presidential administration changes in 2029.
Despite these efforts, public support for Quebec sovereignty remains around 30 percent. The PQ will govern as a minority with just 28 percent of the popular vote, its lowest share ever in the province.