Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns
Voters cited economy, cost of living, language, and healthcare as key issues during advance polling.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon meets a convinced sovereigntist, Helene Morin, while visiting a local market in Quebec City on Saturday. (The Canadian Press)
Photograph: CBC News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Quebec's general election is scheduled for October 5.
- Advance polling occurred on Sunday and Monday, with voters citing the economy, cost of living, language, and healthcare as primary concerns.
- The Coalition Avenir Québec, Parti Québécois, Quebec Liberals, Quebec Conservatives, and Québec Solidaire are the five parties anticipated to secure seats.
- Advance polling is growing in popularity, though fewer polling stations are available compared to election day.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 23 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 2 of the 25 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
59/100
Hype
20/100
25 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 23 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Quebec's general election is scheduled for October 5. Advance polling took place on Sunday and Monday, with voters casting early ballots. Key issues for voters included the economy, cost of living, language, and healthcare reform. The Coalition Avenir Québec, Parti Québécois, Quebec Liberals, Quebec Conservatives, and Québec Solidaire are the five parties expected to win seats.
Advance polling stations were open from 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on both days. Voters at a Montreal polling station cited various concerns, including the economy and cost of living, as reported by The Canadian Press. Others highlighted language issues, with some voters expressing concern over election documents being sent only in French, in line with the province's new language law. Healthcare reform and digital transition projects were also mentioned as important issues.
Christine Fréchette, leader of the Coalition Avenir Québec, faced criticism from rivals regarding her claims of potential foreign interference in the election. Liberal leader Charles Milliard and Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon stated that her remarks disqualified her from leadership. Fréchette had previously suggested Americans might support the Parti Québécois to destabilize Canada, but later indicated there was no current evidence of interference in the campaign.
Advance polling popularity
According to Élections Québec spokesperson Julie St-Arnaud-Drolet, one-third of voters in the 2022 election cast ballots early. She noted that advance polling is becoming more popular with each election. However, she also pointed out that there are significantly fewer polling stations available during advance voting compared to election day, and it is not necessarily faster to vote early.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated or centre-rated reports printed below mentioned the specific details of the youth voting simulation program, 'Électeurs en herbe,' that Marc Fortin and Denise Tremblay's grandchildren participated in, as described in the full report from CBC News.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 6 times, most recently on 28 Sept 2026, 10:15, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
16 rated outlets
- The left-rated reports led on the opening of advance polling for the Quebec election and the key issues voters were considering. These reports highlighted the economy, cost of living, language, and healthcare reform as central concerns. The full report from CBC News also detailed specific voter concerns about language, including the distribution of election documents in French only and the value of English universities. This report also covered the controversy surrounding Coalition Avenir Québec leader Christine Fréchette's claims of foreign interference and the reactions from rival party leaders.
Centre
7 rated outlets
- The centre-rated reports focused on the Quebec election campaign entering its final week and voters beginning to cast early ballots. These digests mentioned that voters at advance polls identified health care, the economy, language, and the environment as central to their vote. The digests also noted the election day is October 5 and advance polling hours.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns?
- Of the 23 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 70% are rated left, 30% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 25. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns left or right?
- The story itself is neither. What can be counted is who has covered it, and 70% of the 23 rated outlets on it are rated left — so far this is a story carried mostly by the left. Coverage is still arriving and that can change, which is why the figure is dated rather than fixed.
- Is the coverage of Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns biased?
- Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns is one event reported by 25 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Quebec election advance polling opens amid voter concerns?
- 25 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- When is the Quebec general election?
- The Quebec general election is scheduled to take place on October 5. Advance polling was available on the Sunday and Monday preceding the election day, allowing voters to cast their ballots early.
- What are the main issues for Quebec voters?
- Voters in Quebec are primarily concerned with the economy, the cost of living, language issues, and healthcare reform. These topics were frequently cited by individuals participating in advance polling.
- Which parties are expected to win seats in the election?
- Five parties are anticipated to secure seats in the Quebec election. These include the Coalition Avenir Québec, the Parti Québécois, the Quebec Liberals, the Quebec Conservatives, and Québec Solidaire.
Read it at the source
25 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
16- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Guelph Today in a new tab)
Guelph Today — is Guelph Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Bay Today in a new tab)
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Sudbury in a new tab)
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens SooToday.com in a new tab)
SooToday.com — is SooToday.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens flamboroughtoday.com in a new tab)
flamboroughtoday.com — is flamboroughtoday.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens thealbertan.com in a new tab)
thealbertan.com — is thealbertan.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Timmins Today in a new tab)
Timmins Today — is Timmins Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Bowen Island Undercurrent in a new tab)
Bowen Island Undercurrent — is Bowen Island Undercurrent biased? Our profile of this outlet
Show 8 more
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Thorold Today in a new tab)
Thorold Today — is Thorold Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Collingwood Today in a new tab)
Collingwood Today — is Collingwood Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Orillia Matters in a new tab)
Orillia Matters — is Orillia Matters biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Rocky Mountain Outlook in a new tab)
Rocky Mountain Outlook — is Rocky Mountain Outlook biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens The Toronto Star in a new tab)
The Toronto Star — is The Toronto Star biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens The Record in a new tab)
The Record — is The Record biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens The Hamilton Spectator in a new tab)
The Hamilton Spectator — is The Hamilton Spectator biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Economy, language and health on Quebec voters' minds at advance polling (opens CBC News in a new tab)
Centre
7- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Narcity in a new tab)
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens CFJC Today Kamloops in a new tab)
CFJC Today Kamloops — is CFJC Today Kamloops biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Ckpg Today in a new tab)
Ckpg Today — is Ckpg Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Medicine Hat News in a new tab)
Medicine Hat News — is Medicine Hat News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens meadowlakeNOW in a new tab)
meadowlakeNOW — is meadowlakeNOW biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Battlefords NOW in a new tab)
Battlefords NOW — is Battlefords NOW biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Winnipeg Free Press in a new tab)
Winnipeg Free Press — is Winnipeg Free Press biased? Our profile of this outlet
Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
2- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens mtlblog.com in a new tab)
mtlblog.com — is mtlblog.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Quebec election campaign entering final week as voters start to cast early ballots (opens Loonie Politics in a new tab)
Loonie Politics — is Loonie Politics biased? Our profile of this outlet
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.