OCTOBER 6, 2026
Separation Anxiety
The Parti Québécois (PQ) swept back into power last night, ending a 12-year political exile and returning separatism to Quebec’s political agenda. Led by 49-year-old Paul St-Pierre Plamondon – who declared in his victory speech that Quebec “just wants to exist on its own like other countries of the world” – the PQ captured 59 seats, five short of a majority. In a province known for wild electoral swings, the ruling Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) party was annihilated, failing to win even one seat just four years after delivering a massive majority. St-Pierre Plamondon, who on the eve of the election floated the possibility of severing Quebec’s constitutional ties to the monarchy, has promised to hold an independence referendum, but not until U.S. President Donald Trump leaves office in 2029. But having won less than 30 per cent of the popular vote, it’s not clear whether the PQ leader would have enough of a mandate to push that agenda. Still, the symbolism behind last night’s results is hard to miss. With Quebec once again electing a separatist government, Alberta preparing to vote this month on whether to pursue secession and the White House continuing to pressure us to become the 51st U.S. state, Canada is in the throes of a full-on existential crisis. | Getty Images
OCTOBER 5, 2026
National Treasures
Ottawa was definitely the place to be this weekend as two of Canada’s top artists were celebrated in grand style. Was it a coincidence that both hail from Alberta, where voters head to the polls soon to decide whether the province will separate? Surely not! Actor Michael J. Fox turned up on Friday for a ceremony at Rideau Hall where Gov. Gen. Louise Arbour officially elevated him to the companion level of the Order of Canada for his Parkinson’s advocacy. “I didn’t want to be just a name attached to [the disease],” said the 65-year-old Edmonton native in an interview with CTV. After receiving his honour, Arbour and Fox headed over to the National Arts Centre to attend a tribute concert for a fellow Edmontonian, 64-year-old k.d. Lang. The night featured top artists like Michael Bublé, Jann Arden and Jill Barber, who said that lang’s “powerful and distinctive” voice sounds like Canada: “its vastness, its depth of emotion, its ability to express beauty and pain and longing.” Bublé performed Roy Orbison’s 1961 song Crying, a nod to lang’s famous 1987 duet with Orbison that helped vault her to stardom. At the end of the concert, lang thanked the crowd in her typical cheeky manner: “Let’s take this show on the road to the Kennedy Center. Hell yeah! Here come the Canadians! They’re queer, and they’re very, very talented.” | The Canadian Press/Patrick Doyle
