The Decibel
The Decibel
The Globe and Mail
How Gen Z says ‘oui’: Meet Quebec’s young sovereigntists
24 minutes Posted Aug 6, 2026 at 9:00 am.
0:00
24:08
Download MP3
Show notes
With a Quebec provincial election on deck this fall, and the Parti Québécois leading in the polls, there’s a good chance Quebec will hold another referendum on independence. Support for separation is polling at around 30 per cent — far below the majority vote result needed to form an independent country. However, a new generation of sovereigntists is cropping up, one that hadn’t even been born for the last referendum, in 1995.
Maura Forrest is a Quebec correspondent for The Globe and Mail. She’s on the show to talk about what Gen Z sovereignty looks like, how it differs from previous movements, and the implications for the upcoming election.