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Denis Coderre is looking to give a third level of politics a shot.

The former federal cabinet minister and Montreal mayor is the first candidate to announce a bid to lead the Quebec Liberals.

The job has been vacant since Dominique Anglade resigned in November, 2022, after Premier François Legault led the Coalition Avenir Quebec to re-election that year, winning a second majority.

The Quebec Liberals will elect a new leader next June. The next provincial election is scheduled for October, 2026.

“We need experienced men and women. We need to find ourselves,” Coderre, 60, said during an hour-long news conference today in front of Quebec’s legislature.

“I invite all those who feel pushed aside, all the disappointed Liberals, all the Liberals who stayed home to come back.”

Although the Quebec Liberals are now polling in single digits with francophone voters, Coderre said unity may help the party.

“I have 40 years of experience in politics. I’ve always loved this party,” he said. “It’s important that we come together again.”

Coderre was a Liberal MP from 1997 to 2013, serving as immigration minister and president of the Queen’s Privy Council. He was elected Montreal mayor in 2013, but defeated after one term by Valerie Plante. In 2021, he ran to regain the mayor’s post, but was defeated again by Plante.

Full story here.

All the best for the summer!

This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Ian Bailey. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you're reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.

TODAY'S HEADLINES

Concern over Indigenous identity fraud heightened by government definitions: minister: Gary Anandasangaree, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, says a lot of talk about the issue of so-called Indigenous identity fraud is based around apprehensions people have about the government defining who is – and who isn’t – a rights-holder.

Ontario Science Centre shut down over roof collapse risk, says Ford government: The sudden vacating of the complex, built in 1969 and designed by the late renowned architect Raymond Moriyama, is the latest twist in the battle over the future of the attraction, which welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors a year.

Former Surrey mayor Linda Hepner to run for B.C. Conservatives: CBC reports Hepner is coming out of retirement in hopes of becoming an MLA in the new provincial riding of Surrey-Serpentine River. She is the latest in a series of candidates who have signed on with the party running second to the governing B.C. New Democrats in the polls ahead of an election this fall.

Minister wants B.C. to be model for aquaculture as it moves to containment: Federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier said, in Vancouver, that the country’s “strict rules” on banning open-net salmon farming are necessary, since the goal is to make British Columbia “a model” in global aquaculture.

Ontario judge finds no documentation to support Global News reporting on Han Dong allegations: Justice Paul Perell of the Ontario Superior Court made the comments as he rejected an application from Corus Entertainment to throw out the lawsuit of the former Liberal MP against the news agency, saying it is in the public interest to hear the case.

Video appears to show man spit on MP: CTV reports that it appears that Liberal MP and former cabinet minister Marco Mendicino was spat on while on his way into a government building in Ottawa.

Quebec, Ottawa announce $115-million for emergency housing in Montreal: The funding will create more than 520 new housing spaces in Montreal, a 30-per-cent boost in available accommodation in the city compared to last December.

Royal Canadian Navy led conga lines in Havana as part of ‘deterrence’ visit to Cuba, photos show: Photos posted on social media by Canada’s embassy in Cuba show a Royal Canadian Navy band member leading conga lines during a performance in downtown Havana, interactions that cast doubt on Defence Minister Bill Blair’s description of a warship port visit as a deterrent to Moscow.

TODAY’S POLITICAL QUOTES

“The announced closure of the Ontario Science Centre is a painful loss for the city, across generations new and old. I’m deeply disappointed that successive provincial governments have let it fall into such disrepair over the years.” – Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow on the closing of the venerable science centre.

“Even the people that really dislike him want to have their picture with him.” – Liberal MP John McKay, today, on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. McKay announced he won’t seek re-election after 27 years as a Toronto-area MP, saying,. “You’ve got to hang up your skates sometime.” As for the Liberals, who are running behind the Conservatives in public-opinion polls, McKay noted that the party has a deep hole to climb out of in the next election, but Trudeau has a defensible legislative record on such issues as dental care, pharmacare, and handling Donald Trump as U.S. president.

THIS AND THAT

Deputy Prime Minister’s Day: Private meetings in Vancouver, and Chrystia Freeland visited an Indigenous non-profit organization and met with community members.

PRIME MINISTER'S DAY

Justin Trudeau was in Cape Breton participating in a trail walk and storytelling session for National Indigenous Peoples Day. Accompanied by Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree, the Prime Minister also made an announcement related to historic claims and better education for Indigenous Peoples.

LEADERS

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May travelled from Ottawa to her Saanich-Gulf Islands riding in British Columbia, and was scheduled to attend private appointments in the afternoon.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in Edmonton, attended Indigenous Peoples Day celebrations at the Bent Arrow Culture Camp and the Bissell Centre. Later, Singh spoke in Calgary at the Rachel Notley Legacy Gala.

No schedules released for Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.

PUBLIC OPINION

Read the report: A strong majority of Canadians surveyed say each federal leader should read the report by foreign interference by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians, according to new research by the Angus Reid Institute. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has declined to do so, saying that measure would limit his ability to comment on what he read in the report.

OPINION

The right question to ask about international students and housing

“In Nova Scotia, some students are waking up at 3 a.m. to make the four-hour drive to their school, Cape Breton University, in Sydney. Why? Because the school admitted far more students than could be reasonably housed nearby, and because those students want access to the job market in Halifax. Of those admitted, 80 per cent are international students.” - The Globe and Mail Editorial Board.

Canada is heading for humiliation at the coming NATO summit

“Every government minister has a role to play. As Minister of National Defence, Bill Blair’s role seems to be to find new and more creative ways to imply that Canada will live up to its NATO commitments without ever actually committing to do so. Or certainly that it would, if only he were Defence Minister.” - Andrew Coyne.

With deadly heat, air conditioning is no longer a luxury – it’s a necessity

“When I first moved to Vancouver about 20 years ago, I was surprised that virtually no homes had air conditioning. You don’t need it here, everybody said. Summers are moderate, lovely. Things have changed. And not just here.” - Marsha Lederman.

Quebeckers are feeling Celine Dion’s pain, and rooting for her comeback

“Generations of francophone Quebeckers had grown up being told they were né pour un petit pain (born for bread crumbs), eternally condemned to a lower rank than their anglophone compatriots. Ms. Dion shattered the linguistic glass ceiling once and for all, without ever renouncing her Québécois roots or accent.” - Konrad Yakabuski

The world needs to win in Ukraine

“Defeating Russia’s invasion in Ukraine is the pivotal fight of our time – one that will determine whether our children grow up amid crumbling institutions and besieged democracies, or with renewed opportunity. To win this victory in Ukraine, we have to see it, commit to it – and understand fully what it requires.” - Chris Alexander.

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