On the defensive, the Parti Quebecois will try to run out the clock on Charest's popularity by delaying elections until the last possible moment. But in that time, anything can happen. The euphoria may dissipate. Charest may falter. A hero now, he may soon become but a martyr for Canadian federalism, as Canada moves towards a breakup, at which time the United States may have to prepare for the absorption of new states.
Temporary euphoria reigns as the political paradigm is upset.
Quebec's voters are fundamentally nationalist. They encourage intolerant French language laws. Jean Charest, the cosmopolitan bilingual tool of English Canada is out of step with these people. Sooner or later, one has to believe he will pay for it politically. Outside his Parliamentary seat in Sherbrooke, Quebec, he has lost most of the political battles he has fought.