Quebec will closely monitor the potential impacts a new Donald Trump presidency will have on immigration and the economy, with the premier warning the province risks “experiencing turbulence” in the coming months.
François Legault was addressing Wednesday the outcome of Trump clinching the United States presidential election in a political comeback that saw him defeat Kamala Harris.
It will be Trump’s second, non-consecutive term at the helm of American leadership and, as a result, Legault says he will implement a “working group” composed of several cabinet ministers to defend Quebec’s interests.
“Americans voted yesterday and Mr. Trump won,” Legault said at the provincial legislature. “And we have to respect that result.”
But Legault was quick to lay out his concerns about Trump’s victory, warning of a possible inpouring of asylum seekers at the border and steeper tariffs on exports from Quebec.
When it comes to immigration, Legault says the province has “done its part” and simply cannot take on more new arrivals. Trump has promised to deport millions of undocumented immigrants from the United States as one of his priorities.
“We should not see a massive influx of immigrants coming via the United States, because that could really unbalance the job market,” Legault said. “And already, our reception capacity, our integration capacity is overwhelmed.”
Quebec’s premier is particularly worried about more migrants at both land borders and airports. Legault says his government is looking at further securing its own land borders with the U.S. if necessary.
“First what I want to do is make sure that Mr. (Justin) Trudeau and the federal government takes this seriously. I want a follow-up every week about the number of immigrants we get in Quebec,” Legault said.
The comments come as the Legault government has implemented stricter immigration policies in recent months and continues to push its federal counterpart to do the same. Quebec has tussled with Ottawa over immigration recently, asking for more power to decide who can settle in the province, and demanding Ottawa forcibly relocate asylum seekers to other parts of the country.
Last week, Quebec suspended two major programs that are pathways to citizenship, saying it wants to “better regulate” newcomers to the province. In October, it introduced legislation to give itself new powers to limit the number of international students.
With a White House under Trump, Legault’s other main concern is the economy. Trump has proposed 10 per cent across-the-board tariffs, making the duties the centrepiece of his platform.
Legault is worried about Quebec’s exports, particularly when it comes to the industries of aerospace, aluminum manufacturing, forestry and food.
“Unfortunately, we must expect that there will be actions taken by Mr. Trump and his team that could be negative for Canada’s economy and Quebec’s economy,” Legault said.
“I think we have to tell ourselves the truth. There are jobs at stake. So we will have to be very strategic, especially in key sectors, where Quebec has a lot of exports to the United States.”
Legault’s comments come as other Canadian politicians, including Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, congratulated Trump in posts on X.
— with files from Global’s Gabby Rodrigues and The Canadian Press