PQ candidate Guy Leclair quits Quebec election amid drunk driving charges

MONTREAL — A candidate for the Parti Quebecois has withdrawn his candidacy just weeks before the provincial election.

Guy Leclair, the PQ candidate and outgoing member of the legislature for the Montreal-area riding of Beauharnois, announced his resignation in a statement late Wednesday.

The announcement came on the same day Leclair was charged with impaired driving and refusing to obey a police officer.

In his statement, Leclair says he expects to be acquitted of the charges but he had to withdraw for the good of the party.