The Bloc Qubcois has been cruising to a comeback, but now faces big debate test

Bloc QubcoisLeaderYves-Franois Blanchet surrounded himself on Monday with union leaders inSept-les, Que.,and appealedto the blue-collar workers of the northeastern iron town to help make his party kingmaker in the next Parliament.

"Imagine the potential gains that would mean for the workers of Quebec,"Blanchetsaid, outlining his hope of holding the balance of power should the election end witha minority government.

For most of the campaign, Blanchethas been closely following a path laid down by Quebec'scentre-right provincial government, led by Franois Legault and the Coalition Avenir Qubec(CAQ).

ToLegault's desirefor fewer immigrants, a values test for newcomers and restrictions on religious symbols, Blanchethas said yes, yes and yes.

"The demands of the Quebec government are clear. They are legitimate and they are reasonable," Blanchet said. "We will be its voice."

Sure, it may lack originality, but there are signs the Bloc's platform is resonating with voters.

Whereas the Bloc's two main rivals in Quebec the Liberals and Conservatives have lost some support in the province since the election began, the Bloc's pollnumbers have ticked upward.

CBC's poll tracker puts the party ataround 21 per cent in the province, about the same as the Tories. And while that's still well behind the Liberals, who are polling around 35 per cent, this was a party that had been pronounced dead by many of its own members just a year ago.

Under the leadership of Martine Ouellet, seven of the party's10 MPsquit the caucus; the end looked nigh for the sovereigntist party formed in 1991, following the failure of theMeech Lake Accord.

Taking over from Ouellet seemed like a fool's errand. Blanchet, a former Parti Qubcois cabinet minister turned political pundit, was the only candidate in the race.

He quickly shepherded the erstwhile MPs back into the party and set about rebuilding itsimage. Gone now are the obituary-style headlines, replaced in recent days with more upbeat phrases:"The Bloc gaining ground in Quebec," "TheBloc unblocked," "The stars align for the Bloc," and "The Bloc's free ride."

But on Wednesday, Blanchet will take part in his first debate as leader of a federal political party.

He's about to find out how far he can ride the coattails of a popular provincial government.

All eyes on the new kid

From the outset of the federal election campaign, Blanchetaligned himself withLegault's CAQ government, which is still polling well a year into its mandate.

"We have a government that, for the first time in a longtime... displays an unabashed nationalism,"Blanchetsaid athis campaign kickoff speech."I have to say it: that feels good."

The Bloc's long-standing partner at the provincial level is, of course,the Parti Qubcois(PQ). Sothe Bloc'saffection for this new party, the CAQ, which is not even sovereigntist, might appear, well, unfaithful.

But Legault'snationalism won him a majority, while the sovereigntistPQ is now the smallest party in the provincial legislature.

And it was Legault'sconservative nationalism that delivered Quebecers sweeping legislation limiting religious symbols in the civil service, in the face of opposition from federalists.

Asked to explain his popularity, Legaulttold the Journal de Montral he was giving power back to Quebec's "historical majority." It is nationalism, not sovereignty, that is the safer bet in Quebec politics these days.

But there'scompetition on this front.The Conservatives are vying for the same CAQ voters the Bloc is courting.

At a recent campaign event, the Conservatives' Quebec lieutenant, Alain Rayes, sketched his view of the battleground.

"In some parts of the province, the Liberals are our adversaries," Rayes said. "But we won't hide it, in the northern ring around Montreal, on the south shore [of Montreal] and in the centre of Quebec, it's the Bloc who is our adversary."

Like the CAQ,Rayesand his fellow ConservativeMPs from the province are pitchingthemselves as nationalists. And their angle is to remind voters of the Bloc's sovereigntist outlook.

"When we speak with people who voted for the CAQ, more than a majority have the tendency to align with the Conservative Party,"Rayessaid.

"These are people who decided to set aside the constitutional question, who are fed up with constitutional disputes."

Is this when the gloves come off?

Up to this point in the campaign, Blanchet has largely been able to avoid discussing sovereignty, or how he will implement his promises.

As several observers have pointed out,there are few journalists travelling with Blanchet, and his policy proposals have endured far less scrutiny than those of the national parties.

That free ride will likely come to an end on Wednesday, when Blanchettakes part, along with Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in a French-language debate hosted by TVA.

As Blanchet doesn't have a seat in Parliament, this will be the first time he will confront, and be confrontedby, the other party leaders (he didn't take part in the Citytv/Maclean's debate).

TVA's unique debate format, which features one-on-one exchanges between the leaders, will only heighten the confrontational nature of the event.

Oh, and Blanchet's nickname while he was in provincial politics? Goon.

On the campaign trail, he's attracted the most attention when goading the other federal leaders into taking positions onQuebec's secularism law, Bill 21, which bans some civil servants, including teachers, from wearing religious symbols at work.

He even upped the ante last week by proposing that all federal services be deliveredand received with an uncovered face, effectively an anti-niqab measure.

But Blanchet is on less surefooting when it comes to the other major theme of his campaign so far:the environment.

His policies closely mirror those of the CAQ government, itself no darling of the environmental movement. Blanchet's own history as Quebec environment minister which included approving fracking and pipeline projects is also starting to raise questions.

If his federalist rivals want to cut short the sweetheart story of the comeback kid, now is the time.