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Pauline Marois expected to call Quebec election for April 7th

I have to admit that I'm a little giddy today.

I'm sure my journalist, blogger and political junkie brethren across the country are as well.

That's because media outlets are reporting that, on Wednesday, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois is expected to drop the proverbial gauntlet and call a provincial election for April 7th.

Quebec elections aren't your typical kissing babies, 'no new taxes' style battles.

If the 2012 campaign is any indication we're in for a rock-em sockem duel which will include racial attacks, secular debates, sovereignty chatter and language hysteria.

[ Related: Is Quebec's values charter the PQ's ticket to a majority? ]

In the 2012 campaign, you'll recall, we saw one party leader — Francois Legault of the Coalition Avenir Quebec — actually compare Asian kids to Quebec kids.

"If you have kids they'll tell you [the Asian students] are always first in class. One of my sons was telling me, 'Yes, but they have no life,"' Legault told reporters according to the Canadian Press.

It was a political campaign where we had a Quebec Mayor lash out at an Algerian-born PQ candiate for just questioning her party's policy to introduce a secular charter while allowing the crucifix in the National Assembly.

"What’s outraging me this morning is to see us, the soft French Canadians, being dictated to about how to behave, how to respect our culture, by a person who’s come here from Algeria, and we can’t even pronounce her name," Saguenay Mayor Jean Tremblay said, according to the Globe and Mail.

"They’re making our culture and religion disappear everywhere. You don’t realize that."

The media even became the story at one point in the campaign when a Quebec journalist accused the English media of Quebec-bashing; she argued that by calling-out candidates — for their race-related comments — western Canadian reporters were somehow insulting the entire population of Quebec.

[ Related: Quebec Premier Marois would revive sovereignty push with PQ majority ]

This election campaign promises to be even more intense.

The province has debt and deficit problems, challenges with unemployment, and infrastructure nightmares but all those issues are bound to take a back seat to the controversial values charter and language laws.

And you'll recall, recently, the PQ raised the spectre of another sovereignty referendum.

Last month following a Parti Quebecois caucus meeting in Shawinigan, the Premier told reporters that if her government wins a majority mandate in the next election, she will issue a white paper about separation and follow that up with public consultations.

"I am a sovereignist," she said, according to the Globe and Mail.

"And should the people elect me and my government, I will have the possibility to [achieve] sovereignty."

Rejoice my friends: we're in for an 'entertaining' 34 days ahead.

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