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NDP’s last Quebec MP, Alexandre Boulerice, leaves Ottawa to back sovereignty
Boulerice is officially exiting federal politics for Québec solidaire.
Author of the article:Jack Wilson
Published Apr 27, 2026 • Last updated 2 hours ago • 2 minute read
NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice speaks during a press conference held at the West Block in Ottawa on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026.
NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice speaks during a press conference held at the West Block in Ottawa on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. Photo by HYUNGCHEOL PARK /Postmedia
Quitting federal politics for Québec solidaire, the NDP's last Quebec MP said Monday he looked forward to working with progressives in Ottawa — when Quebec is a separate country.
"I hope there will be some left-wing people in the Parliament of Canada and we'll be happy when Quebec will be sovereign to work with them," Alexandre Boulerice told reporters Monday in Montreal as he formally announced his jump from the NDP to the sovereignist Québec solidaire.
Confirmed last Friday, Boulerice's departure will leave federal New Democrats without a single seat in Quebec. Rumours of the move had been in the air for weeks, with Boulerice telling reporters he needed time to make up his mind.
Freshly elected NDP leader Avi Lewis had offered Boulerice an overture, telling reporters he had looked his lone Quebec MP "in the eyes" and said, "Please stay with us."
"Quebec is not going well. The house is not in order," Boulerice said Monday, pitching his jump to provincial politics as a means to fight battles on housing, health care, educational and environmental fronts.
"There is no project of (building) a country without a society project," he said, arguing that nationalist battles around sovereignty, language and culture should come in conjunction with a political approach that "leaves nobody behind."
"The experience of being in a sovereign country's parliament showed me to what extent it's an advantage to have a real state," Boulerice said.
Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal was jubilant as she introduced Boulerice as a candidate, calling him "a fine gentleman."
"It's been months that there hasn't been one interview" without reporters asking whether Boulerice would be joining the party, Ghazal said.
Boulerice was the last MP standing of the 59 Quebec NDP candidates who swept into office in 2011 under former leader Jack Layton.
The NDP's fortunes in the province have since been in decline.
Since the 2019 federal election, Boulerice has been the party's only MP in Quebec, with some suggesting he has held his Montreal seat in Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie not by way of his political banner, but as a result of his personal reputation.
Asked Monday how he'd managed to keep the riding orange after the NDP lost races across Quebec, Boulerice said it took "a lot, a lot of groundwork to stay present."
His departure from the NDP "is not a renouncement of progressives' place in Ottawa," he said, but came out of a "desire to return to Quebec" to fight progressive and sovereignist battles.
The NDP's recent leadership contest attracted little attention in Quebec, with campaigning taking place almost entirely in English. Last November, the party drew ridicule when its five leadership candidates attempted a bilingual debate in Montreal, stumbling through sometimes incomprehensible French and at times struggling to string together full sentences.
Boulerice had been among those critical of the candidates' French, repeating Monday that he'd been "annoyed" by the level of French in the leadership race.
Across Canada, the party steadily retreated under former leaders Tom Mulcair and Jagmeet Singh, losing official party status in 2025 as it fell to just seven seats. With a recent floor crossing and Boulerice's impending departure, the party will soon drop to five MPs in the House of Commons.
ici.radio-canada.ca
torontosun.com
Boulerice is officially exiting federal politics for Québec solidaire.
Author of the article:Jack Wilson
Published Apr 27, 2026 • Last updated 2 hours ago • 2 minute read
NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice speaks during a press conference held at the West Block in Ottawa on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026.
NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice speaks during a press conference held at the West Block in Ottawa on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. Photo by HYUNGCHEOL PARK /Postmedia
Quitting federal politics for Québec solidaire, the NDP's last Quebec MP said Monday he looked forward to working with progressives in Ottawa — when Quebec is a separate country.
"I hope there will be some left-wing people in the Parliament of Canada and we'll be happy when Quebec will be sovereign to work with them," Alexandre Boulerice told reporters Monday in Montreal as he formally announced his jump from the NDP to the sovereignist Québec solidaire.
Confirmed last Friday, Boulerice's departure will leave federal New Democrats without a single seat in Quebec. Rumours of the move had been in the air for weeks, with Boulerice telling reporters he needed time to make up his mind.
Freshly elected NDP leader Avi Lewis had offered Boulerice an overture, telling reporters he had looked his lone Quebec MP "in the eyes" and said, "Please stay with us."
"Quebec is not going well. The house is not in order," Boulerice said Monday, pitching his jump to provincial politics as a means to fight battles on housing, health care, educational and environmental fronts.
"There is no project of (building) a country without a society project," he said, arguing that nationalist battles around sovereignty, language and culture should come in conjunction with a political approach that "leaves nobody behind."
"The experience of being in a sovereign country's parliament showed me to what extent it's an advantage to have a real state," Boulerice said.
Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal was jubilant as she introduced Boulerice as a candidate, calling him "a fine gentleman."
"It's been months that there hasn't been one interview" without reporters asking whether Boulerice would be joining the party, Ghazal said.
Boulerice was the last MP standing of the 59 Quebec NDP candidates who swept into office in 2011 under former leader Jack Layton.
The NDP's fortunes in the province have since been in decline.
Since the 2019 federal election, Boulerice has been the party's only MP in Quebec, with some suggesting he has held his Montreal seat in Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie not by way of his political banner, but as a result of his personal reputation.
Asked Monday how he'd managed to keep the riding orange after the NDP lost races across Quebec, Boulerice said it took "a lot, a lot of groundwork to stay present."
His departure from the NDP "is not a renouncement of progressives' place in Ottawa," he said, but came out of a "desire to return to Quebec" to fight progressive and sovereignist battles.
The NDP's recent leadership contest attracted little attention in Quebec, with campaigning taking place almost entirely in English. Last November, the party drew ridicule when its five leadership candidates attempted a bilingual debate in Montreal, stumbling through sometimes incomprehensible French and at times struggling to string together full sentences.
Boulerice had been among those critical of the candidates' French, repeating Monday that he'd been "annoyed" by the level of French in the leadership race.
Across Canada, the party steadily retreated under former leaders Tom Mulcair and Jagmeet Singh, losing official party status in 2025 as it fell to just seven seats. With a recent floor crossing and Boulerice's impending departure, the party will soon drop to five MPs in the House of Commons.
Le député néo-démocrate Alexandre Boulerice quitte le NPD et Ottawa pour rejoindre Québec solidaire
Chantal Hébert prédit une lutte intéressante dans la circonscription de Rosemont, à Montréal, où Mark Carney a six mois pour déclencher une élection partielle.
ici.radio-canada.ca
NDP’s last Quebec MP leaves Ottawa to back sovereignty
Alexandre Boulerice is officially exiting federal politics for Québec solidaire.