New PQ leader to be elected by mid-October
Party says it will finalize rules of leadership race by end of month
The Parti Québécois will elect a new leader between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15.
The party found itself leaderless after Pierre Karl Péladeau suddenly resigned on Monday, citing family reasons.
Former cabinet minister Sylvain Gaudreault was selected by the party's caucus on Friday as interim leader.
At a news conference on Saturday, party officials said they planned to finalize the rules of the leadership race by the end of May.
Raymond Archambault, who heads the PQ's executive council, told reporters they expected all the formal candidacy papers to be filed by June.
No one has officially declared they are seeking the leadership, but two names so far are being circulated as front-runners.
MNAs Véronique Hivon and Alexandre Cloutier are both expected to announce their campaigns shortly.
Jean-François Lisée and Martine Ouellet have also confirmed they are thinking about throwing their hats into the ring.