Bloc Quebecois

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Bloc Quebecois targets young in Quebec

It's not unusual for the Bloc Quebecois to be trolling bars for youth votes during this election campaign, says political scientist Guy Lachapelle.

"Mr. Mulroney was going to the Old Brewery Mission,'' he said jokingly.

Lachapelle was referring to the 1983 Conservative leadership race when supporters of Brian Mulroney used residents of a homeless shelter to support his bid for the top Tory job.

Lachapelle said, seriously, the Bloc is simply going where the votes are.

"The Bloc has to go where young people are, and going to the bars is not a bad strategy.''

Young voters have traditionally been core supporters of the Bloc and are a key target constituency for the June 28 election.

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Win-win all the way for Bloc

Still, as one of Duceppe's lieutenants pointed out yesterday, the Tories, because they could look to no other opposition party for support, would have the advantage of being completely dependent on the Bloc.

At the end of the day, every one of the current scenarios contains a silver lining for the Bloc.

A minority government of any brand would translate into more influence for the party than it has ever had. But the election of a majority government would free it from worrying about a snap return to the polls.

And nothing would make it easier for the Bloc to promote its case that Quebec and the rest of Canada are fundamentally incompatible than the election of a Conservative majority government with little or no Quebec representation.

It would no longer have to worry about competing with federal ministers from Quebec for attention.

For Duceppe, a campaign that was expected to sound the death knell for his party is so far turning into a rebirth.