WATCH: Raw video: Péladeau seeks PQ leadership
MONTREAL — Categorically stating that achieving Quebec independence is his only political goal, media magnate Pierre Karl Péladeau announced Thursday he will seek the leadership of the Parti Québécois.
“To make Quebec a country.”
Péladeau confirmed what people had long been expecting when a university student asked him after a speech whether he was going to take the plunge.
When another student asked him what could motivate a rich man like him to want to become PQ leader, he repeated the dramatic phrase that marked his entry into politics last spring: “To make Quebec a country.”
The one difference this time was the absence of any fist pump to accompany the declaration.
The gesture and the words were widely considered to have a negative impact on the Parti Québécois just days into the election campaign.
The stunning move forced the PQ to address an issue it normally avoids come election time. After days musing about a post-secession Quebec, the party spent much of the campaign backpedalling as it dropped in the polls.
Later on Thursday, Péladeau made his way to PQ headquarters, where he was again grilled by reporters.
Asked what his main theme will be during the leadership campaign, he replied without hesitation: “Sovereignty.”
“Sovereignty, yes,” he said.
“I think it’s clear that I’ve committed to achieving Quebec sovereignty.
“It is my objective, my only objective.”
While the new PQ leader will be chosen in May 2015, the next election is scheduled to be held in September 2018.
Péladeau said that, if elected leader, he will spend the next few years explaining what he considers the benefits of sovereignty to Quebecers.
Polls have suggested the controlling shareholder of Quebecor Inc. (TSX:QBR.B) would be the front-runner in the race to succeed Pauline Marois as leader.
READ MORE: Péladeau to put Quebecor shares in blind trust if he is PQ leader
The man known in Quebec simply as PKP has been criticized in some quarters for refusing to sell his shares in Quebecor, whose extensive media holdings include the TVA television network, Le Journal de Montreal and the Videotron cable company.
He repeated on Thursday he would be willing to put his shares in a trust if he becomes PQ leader.
Péladeau joins caucus colleagues Jean-Francois Lisee, Bernard Drainville, Alexandre Cloutier and Martine Ouellet in the race.
Another candidate is Pierre Cere, a spokesman for a group that defends the unemployed.
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