François Legault
A former airline executive who reshaped Quebec politics by founding a movement that put provincial identity and economic autonomy at the center of government.
Born 1957 (age 69)·Premier of Quebec since 2018·Birthday: May 26·Baby Boomers
Biography
François Legault's path to power was anything but orthodox. Before entering politics, he co-founded and served as president of Air Transat, a career that grounded him in the pragmatic realities of business. He first entered the National Assembly as a Parti Québécois minister, holding key economic portfolios. In 2011, disillusioned with the old sovereigntist-federalist divide, he launched the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), a party that promised to sideline the independence debate in favor of competent management and a strong Quebec identity within Canada. His bet paid off spectacularly in 2018 when the CAQ swept to a majority, ending nearly fifty years of alternating Liberal and PQ rule. As Premier, Legault has governed with a focus on economic nationalism, using the state's power to protect the French language and assert Quebec's interests, often putting him at odds with the federal government in Ottawa.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
François was born in 1957, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When François Was Born
The biggest hits of 1957
#1 Movie
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best Picture
The Bridge on the River Kwai
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
François's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1957Born
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1962Started school
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1970Became a teenager
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1973Could drive
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1975Could vote
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Turned 21
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1987Turned 30
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 40
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 50
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 60
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 69 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-founded and served as President of Air Transat before entering politics.
- Founded the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) in 2011, a party that fundamentally realigned Quebec's political landscape.
- Led the CAQ to a historic majority victory in 2018, breaking the longstanding two-party dominance in Quebec.
- Served as Quebec's Premier, implementing significant reforms to strengthen the French language via Bill 96.
- Became the Dean (longest-serving current member) of the Quebec National Assembly.
Did You Know?
He is a licensed commercial pilot.
Before Air Transat, he worked as a chartered accountant and business consultant.
He published a political manifesto, 'Cap sur un Québec gagnant' (Heading for a Winning Quebec), in 2013.
Legault and his CAQ party won a second consecutive majority government in the 2022 provincial election.
“We must protect our French language; it is the heart of our nation.”
