There is a certain amount of disgruntlement that naturally creeps in when a party has been in office for a long time.

It doesn’t matter if it’s federal, provincial or municipal politics — the appetite for change starts to grow as administrations are judged on their track records and the public grows weary of their leaders.

It was evident in the backlash toward Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after a decade in office. It’s playing out now with Quebec Premier François Legault’s once-Teflon approval ratings plumbing new depths during the second half of his second mandate. And it’s apparent as two-term Montreal mayor Valérie Plante counts down her days at city hall before a November election.

But the desire for change is one thing; it seems embracing it in the form of a different party, leader or vision you’d actually vote for is quite another.

While Trudeau’s Liberals defied the once-formidable odds after back-to-back minority governments, reincarnating themselves under a new leader with Prime Minister Mark Carney, and Legault intends to fight........

© Montreal Gazette