During the October 2018 general election, due to the mobilization of actors outside the political field (women’s groups, media, pollsters), Quebec experienced an “enchanted parity moment,” in which the use of a discourse based on women’s added value to democracy appeared profitable for candidates and party leaders. Based on an analysis of the media coverage over the six months preceding the elections, this article shows that the statements made by candidates and party leaders on “feminine” qualities and women’s capacity “to do politics differently” partake in a rhetorical strategy that reduces women to their gendered identity. While the social and political conditions strongly encouraged women candidates to do so, the promotion of “femininity” imposed itself as an additional constraint on them, as they had to meet the expectations linked to both their gender and their profession in order to enter a world largely dominated by men.