Parties and candidates

Authorized independent candidates

It is possible to be a candidate in an election without being associated with a political party. In this case, the person has the status of independent candidate and to run in this capacity, the person must obtain an authorization from the Directeur général des élections du Québec.

This application is usually made after the calling of elections with the returning officer, at the same time as the filing of the nomination paper, in the electoral division in which the candidate wishes to run. Once an authorization has been granted, the official representative of the candidate can solicit and collect contributions.

An elector who wishes to run as a candidate in the elections can also obtain an authorization from the Directeur général des élections du Québec without an election having been called, namely three years after the final list of the MNAs elected during a general election was received by the Secretary General of the National Assembly. With this status of "authorized elector", the future candidate will be able to solicit and collect contributions by way of his official representative.

The authorization granted to a candidate who was not elected expires not later than December 31st of the year that follows that of the election, which allows the candidate to collect, if necessary, funds to pay off his debts.

Moreover, consult the list of authorized independent candidates >>