Canada: Openly Gay Éric Duhaime Leads Conservative Party of Quebec in Provincial Election

In September 2026, the election campaign for the National Assembly gained momentum in the Canadian province of Quebec, where the Conservative Party of Quebec (Parti conservateur du Québec, PCQ) is led by 57-year-old openly gay politician Éric Duhaime. Duhaime is the first openly gay leader of a conservative party in Canadian history at either the federal or provincial level. According to a campaign analysis by the Canadian publication Gay Globe , the Quebec Conservatives enter the race with a unique stance on LGBTQ+ issues for the political right, combining explicit support for gay and lesbian rights with criticism of contemporary gender identity policies.

The PCQ’s election platform under Duhaime is anchored in economic libertarianism, tax cuts, reductions in government spending, healthcare decentralization, and enhanced provincial autonomy. On civil rights, Duhaime consistently emphasizes that equal rights for gay and lesbian individuals—including same-sex marriage and adoption—are firmly established and settled in Quebec, reiterating that his party has no intention of revisiting these rights or abortion access. At the same time, the conservative leader opposes public funding for advocacy organizations and child-oriented drag events, criticizes “identity politics,” and advocates for parental authority in schools, calling for a ban on gender reassignment surgeries for minors and mandatory parental consent for puberty blockers.

Duhaime’s approach has drawn mixed reactions across Canadian society and within the LGBTQ+ community. Supporters argue that his leadership demonstrates that center-right conservatism can exist without homophobia, prioritizing individual liberty and constitutional freedoms over ideological orthodoxy. Conversely, representatives of several human rights and transgender advocacy organizations criticize the party’s platform on gender identity, arguing that curtailing inclusive school curricula and restricting healthcare for trans youth fosters discrimination. According to public polling data and aggregator projections from Qc125, the Conservative Party of Quebec is positioned to win between 7 and 15 seats, which could secure the party its first formal parliamentary caucus in the National Assembly.

Éric Duhaime was born in 1969 in Montreal, earning a degree in political science from the Université de Montréal and a master’s from the École nationale d’administration publique (ÉNAP). He worked as a political advisor for the Action démocratique du Québec and in Canada’s federal parliament, as well as a consultant for international development programs in Morocco and Iraq. In the 2010s, Duhaime gained prominence as a radio commentator and author. In 2017, he came out publicly in his book “The End of Homosexuality and the Last Gay Man” (La fin de l’homosexualité et le dernier gay), asserting that the core battle for gay equality was won and warning against a “victim industry.” In April 2021, Duhaime was elected leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec with nearly 96% of party member votes.

Previously, Uránia reported on key Canadian LGBTQ+ developments, including the legal challenge over transgender women’s placement in Canadian female prisons and the opening of the national LGBTQ2+ monument Thunderhead in Ottawa , as well as other openly gay figures in international conservative parties, such as the nomination of Stefan Evers to lead Berlin’s CDU parliamentary group and the re-election of Frank-Christian Hansel for Alternative for Germany .