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Christine Fréchette, newly elected Coalition Avenir Québec leader and Quebec premier-designate, speaks at a news conference in Quebec City, on Monday, April 13, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
By The Canadian Press

Christine Fréchette to be sworn into office today as Quebec’s second female premier

Apr 15, 2026 | 2:00 AM

QUÉBEC — Christine Fréchette is set to be sworn in as Quebec’s premier today with less than six months to go before the provincial election.

She defeated Bernard Drainville in the race to replace François Legault, who created the Coalition Avenir Québec in 2011 and had been premier since 2018.

The 55-year-old Fréchette will be the province’s second female premier after the Parti Québécois’s Pauline Marois held the role from 2012 to 2014.

Fréchette has said she will name a cabinet next week and intends to make at least one announcement in the coming days related to the cost of living.

First elected in 2022 in the Sanguinet riding south of Montreal, Fréchette held the economy and immigration portfolios in Legault’s cabinet.

She now faces the task of boosting the fortunes of the Coalition Avenir Québec, which is polling behind the Liberals, the Parti Québécois and the Conservatives ahead of the Oct. 5 election.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 15, 2026.

The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press