Véronique Hivon announced Tuesday that she will not run in the upcoming Parti Québécois (PQ) leadership race.
Hivon has been MNA for Joliette since 2008 and was deputy leader with Jean-François Lisée during the 2018 election campaign, but she says her family needs her now more than ever, although she wouldn’t specify in what way.
“I know in part why they like me is because they know this human factor that I try to bring to politics. Well, it happens that this factor can affect the person who tries to bring it into politics,” Hivon told reporters.
Hivon ran in the PQ leadership race in 2016, but dropped out due to illness. She acknowledges that many people thought she was the obvious choice for leader now, but she says she never considered herself a shoo-in.
The PQ suffered its worst election result in the history of the party in 2018, electing online nine MNAs, but Hivon said she expects to see a number of people throw their hat into the leadership ring during a special convention this November.
She also says she is living proof that female politicians can strike a work-family balance.
“And politics is fun and I want more women to come into politics.”
Hivon said she is definitely not quitting politics and plans to run again in 2022.
“It is possible to…be able to run your personal life, your family life and your political life at the same time,” she explained.
“But it is also possible — as it is for men — to say that at one point in your life, when the circumstances are not there for the next challenge with a greater intensity, a much greater intensity, it’s also okay to say, ‘Not today, but I still am relevant and I will still fight for my people and I will still fight for the files that are dear to my heart.'”
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