Parti Qubcois will have new leader in May 2015

The next Parti Qubcois leader will be chosen in May, with candidates who want to take the helm of the separatist party having until Jan. 30 to throw their hat in the ring.

To run, they will be required to put up $20,000 and have the signatures of at least 2,000 supporters.

They will also have a spending cap of $400,000.

• Jean-Franois Lise to Pierre Karl Pladeau: Dump your Qubecor shares

Details of the leadership race were unveiled at a PQ meeting in Sherbrooke, Que., on Saturday.

Stphane Bdard has been interim PQ leader since shortly after the resignation of Pauline Marois following last April's provincial election.

While there are no official candidates so far, the front-runner is believed to be Pierre Karl Pladeau, the controlling shareholder of media corporationQubecor.

The media magnate rejected a demand from potential leadership rival Jean-Franois Lise on Saturday to sell his stake in Qubecor if he runs for the leadership.

"I have no intention of selling the shares that were bequeathed to me by father, who helped build Quebec as it is now," said Pladeau, who did not say whether he would re-evaluate his position if he becomes PQ leader in seven months.

Lise said Pladeau would put the PQ in a position of "incredible vulnerability" vis--vis its political opponents if he kept his Qubecor stake.

The company is omnipresent in Quebec, with its properties including the TVA television network, Le Journal de Montreal, weekly newspapers and celebrity-driven magazines.

The PQleadership vote will take place May 13-15. If required, a second round vote will take place May 20-22.

The race officially begins Oct. 14.