Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois invited to review his leadership style

Photo: Jacques Boissinot The Canadian Press According to our information, some members of the caucus believe that Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois is due for some introspection.

The day after the departure of Émilise Lessard-Therrien as co-spokesperson for Québec solidaire (QS), Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois was invited, Tuesday, to reflect on his management style at the head of the party.

Acccosted at the entrance to the caucus of elected solidarity representatives, the deputy for Rosemont, Vincent Marissal, who had been the only one to support Ms. Lessard-Therrien during the race for female co-spokesperson last year, admitted that it was time for Mr. Nadeau-Dubois to begin thinking about his way of managing the party.

“The short answer is yes. The long answer is: what are we changing ? We change every day; it’s adjusting every day,” he said. “I know he knows there are things that need to change. »

The supportive elected official assured that he “of course” maintained his trust in Mr. Nadeau-Dubois and took his “share of responsibility” in the departure by Ms. Lessard-Therrien. “I feel a little guilty. Should I have intervened ?” he asked out loud. “For my part, I have a big stone in my shoe. I don't feel great. »

In the morning, two elected officials from the party came to the defense of the solidarity co-spokesperson, whose leadership has been publicly called into question since his fellow spokesperson abandoned ship on Monday. Expected at the National Assembly, the main person concerned instead absented himself from parliament to better “digest the events”.

“He is shaken by the situation”, said justified a press officer from the parliamentary wing of QS. The “GND” bodyguard assures that he will be back on Wednesday.

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At a press conference in parliament with solidarity MP Christine Labrie, the parliamentary leader of the political party, Alexandre Leduc, deplored on Tuesday that they were trying to “look for someone to blame” to justify Ms. Lessard-Therrien.

“It’s like playing werewolf. Then, who’s the one being hanged this evening ? Who’s the culprit today ?” he told the journalists. “Gabriel, he’s not a boss. He can’t wake up one morning and say, “this is what we do.” »

Weakened leadership ?

In his message published Monday to aurores, Émilise Lessard-Therrien points to the actions of “a small team of professionals woven tightly around the male spokesperson” to explain her departure. She deplores the fact that “an organizational blockage has arisen, within a party which was created to do politics differently.”

According to the information collected Le Devoir On Monday, some members of the caucus believe that Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois should think about his place as spokesperson. In our pages, former candidates asked him to begin a process of introspection on his leadership.

Christine Labrie, who took part in the race against Émilise Lessard-Therrien last year, deplores that the departure of the solidarity co-spokesperson damages the reputation of her colleague Nadeau-Dubois and that the feminist reputation of the party is thus seen tainted.

“I myself am a woman who works with Gabriel and I would tell you that, when I hear people say that we don't give enough space for women, and then they have no leadership within the party, that bothers me a lot. Because I feel that I have leadership in that party,” she said on Tuesday.

Interviewed at the Entering their daily caucus on Tuesday, several MPs refused to stop to speak to the media. This is the case of the whip at Québec solidaire, Alejandra Zaga Mendez, and the member for Jean-Lesage, Sol Zanetti.

According to Christine Labrie, the team of deputies is “in mourning”. “The caucus is affected, for sure, by Émilise’s decision. Many were taken by surprise by her decision,” she said, before clarifying that she “does not see any dissension” in the caucus.

Monday , Sol Zanetti had promised Émilise Lessard-Therrien that her “difficult and courageous” gesture would not go without echo within the party. “Political struggle is not supposed to be this exhausting,” he wrote on Facebook.