Nouveau Parti démocratique du Québec
Encyclopedia
The New Democratic Party of Quebec (in French
: Nouveau Parti démocratique du Québec) (NPD-Québec or NPDQ) was a political party
in Quebec
, Canada
, with social-democratic
and democratic socialist
ideological tendencies. The name was used from 1963 to 1994.
) (FTQ) and of the Quebec section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
(CCF), which had been known as the Parti social démocratique du Québec
(PSD) since 1955.
On the federal level, in its role as the Quebec section of the New Democratic Party
, the NPDQ contested the Canadian federal elections between 1962 and 1988.
Until the end of the 1960s, in conformity with the division of roles that had been decided in 1963, the NPDQ was active exclusively on the federal political level in Quebec. This left the provincial political level to the Socialist Party of Quebec (Parti socialiste du Québec, PSQ). After the disappearance of the PSQ around 1968, the NPDQ continued to concentrate most of its attention on the federal level during the 1970s and the early 1980s. It made a few incursions on the provincial level, running a small number of candidates, first in the Quebec general election of 1970
, and later in the general election of 1976
, the second time as part of a coalition with the Regroupement des militants syndicaux
(RMS).
The provincial party became defunct following leader Henri-François Gautrin
's resignation in 1979.
In the mid-1980s, the federal NDP's Quebec section determined that there was a new political vacuum in Quebec politics and that, in addition to its role in federal politics, the time had come for the NPDQ to return to the provincial scene. The NPDQ officially registered as a political party in Quebec in 1985 and selected Jean-Paul Harney as leader. It ran in the general elections in 1985, 1989 and 1994.
In 1989, the NPDQ voted to disaffiliate from the federal NDP as a result policy differences such as the provincial party's opposition to the Meech Lake Accord
, its support for Quebec's language policy, differences with the federal party over the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement and its more favourable position towards Quebec nationalism
. As a result, the NPDQ concentrated its activities on the Quebec provincial political level, and its members became free to adhere to any federal political party. Similarly, the federal NDP directed its activities in Quebec exclusively on the federal political level, through its Quebec branch renamed the New Democratic Party of Canada (Quebec Section), which runs candidates only in federal elections and whose members became free to adhere to any provincial political party in Quebec. Practically, this brought the situation back to what it had been between 1963 and 1968, but with the difference that the NPDQ, which after the first division of 1963 had ended up being an organization centered on federal politics, now ended up being an organization centered on provincial politics after the second division of 1989.
Tensions between the provincial and federal parties mounted in 1990 when the NDPQ announced its support for Gilles Duceppe
's candidacy as a Bloc Québécois
candidate in a federal by-election and urged federal NDP candidate Louise O'Neill to withdraw from the contest so as not to split the vote. As a result, the federal party voted to sever its "fraternal ties" to its former provincial wing and the provincial party was encouraged to change its name. The federal NDP denounced the provincial party when it nominated former Front de libération du Québec
member Paul Rose as a candidate in a provincial by-election. Rose had been convicted for his role in the murder of Pierre Laporte
during the 1970 October Crisis
. The federal NDP announced that they were seeking legal means to force the NDPQ to stop calling using the name "New Democratic".
After the general election of 1994
, the NPDQ decided to change its name to Parti de la Democratie Socialiste
(PDS). Under this new name, the PDS contested the general election of 1998
. The PDS subsequently merged into the Union des forces progressistes (UFP), which in turn merged into Québec solidaire
. QS contested its first general election in 2007
and elected its first MNA in 2008.
†coalition Nouveau Parti démocratique du Québec / Regroupement des militants syndicaux
, the idea of recreating the NPDQ was brought up. However, the idea failed to win support at the New Democratic Party-Quebec Section's convention in November 2006 in Saint-Jérôme.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
: Nouveau Parti démocratique du Québec) (NPD-Québec or NPDQ) was a political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, with social-democratic
Social democracy
Social democracy is a political ideology of the center-left on the political spectrum. Social democracy is officially a form of evolutionary reformist socialism. It supports class collaboration as the course to achieve socialism...
and democratic socialist
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
ideological tendencies. The name was used from 1963 to 1994.
History
The NPDQ was created in 1963 following the concerted efforts of the Quebec Federation of Labour (Fédération des travailleurs du QuébecFédération des travailleurs du Québec
The Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec , or FTQ, is the largest labour federation in Quebec in terms of its membership. It has over 500,000 members, who account for 44% of the unionised workers in Quebec. This ratio is 60% in the private sector, in which most members work...
) (FTQ) and of the Quebec section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation was a Canadian political party founded in 1932 in Calgary, Alberta, by a number of socialist, farm, co-operative and labour groups, and the League for Social Reconstruction...
(CCF), which had been known as the Parti social démocratique du Québec
Parti social démocratique du Québec
The Parti social démocratique du Québec was the Quebec wing of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation. It was founded in 1939 as the Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif and was led by Thérèse Casgrain from 1951 to 1957 and by Michel Chartrand from 1957 to 1960...
(PSD) since 1955.
On the federal level, in its role as the Quebec section of the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
, the NPDQ contested the Canadian federal elections between 1962 and 1988.
Until the end of the 1960s, in conformity with the division of roles that had been decided in 1963, the NPDQ was active exclusively on the federal political level in Quebec. This left the provincial political level to the Socialist Party of Quebec (Parti socialiste du Québec, PSQ). After the disappearance of the PSQ around 1968, the NPDQ continued to concentrate most of its attention on the federal level during the 1970s and the early 1980s. It made a few incursions on the provincial level, running a small number of candidates, first in the Quebec general election of 1970
Quebec general election, 1970
The Quebec general election of 1970 was held on April 29, 1970 to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec, Canada. The former Legislative Assembly had been renamed the "National Assembly" in 1968...
, and later in the general election of 1976
Quebec general election, 1976
The Quebec general election of 1976 was held on November 15, 1976 to elect members to National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. It was one of the most significant elections in Quebec history, rivalled only by the 1960 general election, and caused major repercussions in the rest of Canada...
, the second time as part of a coalition with the Regroupement des militants syndicaux
Regroupement des militants syndicaux
The Regroupement des militants syndicaux or RMS was a political organization founded in 1974 by members of the Groupe socialiste des travailleurs du Québec involved in the three main trade-unions in Quebec to rally trade unionists into political action.On the political scene, the RMS was deeply...
(RMS).
The provincial party became defunct following leader Henri-François Gautrin
Henri-François Gautrin
Henri-François Gautrin is a Quebec politician, teacher and physician. He is the current Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Verdun in the Montreal region...
's resignation in 1979.
In the mid-1980s, the federal NDP's Quebec section determined that there was a new political vacuum in Quebec politics and that, in addition to its role in federal politics, the time had come for the NPDQ to return to the provincial scene. The NPDQ officially registered as a political party in Quebec in 1985 and selected Jean-Paul Harney as leader. It ran in the general elections in 1985, 1989 and 1994.
In 1989, the NPDQ voted to disaffiliate from the federal NDP as a result policy differences such as the provincial party's opposition to the Meech Lake Accord
Meech Lake Accord
The Meech Lake Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and ten provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the government of the Province of Quebec to endorse the 1982 Canadian Constitution and increase...
, its support for Quebec's language policy, differences with the federal party over the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement and its more favourable position towards Quebec nationalism
Quebec nationalism
Quebec nationalism is a nationalist movement in the Canadian province of Quebec .-1534–1774:Canada was first a french colony. Jacques Cartier claimed it for France in 1534, and permanent French settlement began in 1608. It was part of New France, which constituted all French colonies in North America...
. As a result, the NPDQ concentrated its activities on the Quebec provincial political level, and its members became free to adhere to any federal political party. Similarly, the federal NDP directed its activities in Quebec exclusively on the federal political level, through its Quebec branch renamed the New Democratic Party of Canada (Quebec Section), which runs candidates only in federal elections and whose members became free to adhere to any provincial political party in Quebec. Practically, this brought the situation back to what it had been between 1963 and 1968, but with the difference that the NPDQ, which after the first division of 1963 had ended up being an organization centered on federal politics, now ended up being an organization centered on provincial politics after the second division of 1989.
Tensions between the provincial and federal parties mounted in 1990 when the NDPQ announced its support for Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe is a Canadian politician, and proponent of the Québec sovereignty movement. He was a Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons for over 20 years and was the leader of the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois for almost 15 years. He is the son of a well-known Quebec actor, Jean...
's candidacy as a Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...
candidate in a federal by-election and urged federal NDP candidate Louise O'Neill to withdraw from the contest so as not to split the vote. As a result, the federal party voted to sever its "fraternal ties" to its former provincial wing and the provincial party was encouraged to change its name. The federal NDP denounced the provincial party when it nominated former Front de libération du Québec
Front de libération du Québec
The Front de libération du Québec was a left-wing Quebecois nationalist and Marxist-Leninist paramilitary group in Quebec, Canada. It was active between 1963 and 1970, and was regarded as a terrorist organization for its violent methods of action...
member Paul Rose as a candidate in a provincial by-election. Rose had been convicted for his role in the murder of Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician who was the Deputy Premier and Minister of Labour of the province of Quebec before being kidnapped and killed by members of the group Front de libération du Québec during the October Crisis. Mr...
during the 1970 October Crisis
October Crisis
The October Crisis was a series of events triggered by two kidnappings of government officials by members of the Front de libération du Québec during October 1970 in the province of Quebec, mainly in the Montreal metropolitan area.The circumstances ultimately culminated in the only peacetime use...
. The federal NDP announced that they were seeking legal means to force the NDPQ to stop calling using the name "New Democratic".
After the general election of 1994
Quebec general election, 1994
The Quebec general election of 1994 was held on September 12, 1994, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec, Canada. The Parti Québécois, led by Jacques Parizeau, defeated the incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by Daniel Johnson, Jr.....
, the NPDQ decided to change its name to Parti de la Democratie Socialiste
Parti de la démocratie socialiste
The Parti de la Democratie Socialiste was a political party in Quebec, Canada.The early origins of the PDS can be traced back to the Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif , later renamed Parti social démocratique du Québec...
(PDS). Under this new name, the PDS contested the general election of 1998
Quebec general election, 1998
The Quebec general election of 1998 was held on November 30, 1998, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The incumbent Parti Québécois, led by Lucien Bouchard, won re-election, defeating the Quebec Liberal Party, led by Jean Charest.After the narrow defeat of...
. The PDS subsequently merged into the Union des forces progressistes (UFP), which in turn merged into Québec solidaire
Québec Solidaire
Québec solidaire is a democratic socialist and sovereigntist political party in Quebec, Canada, that was created on 4 February 2006 in Montreal. It was formed by the merger of the left-wing party Union des forces progressistes and the alter-globalization political movement Option Citoyenne, led...
. QS contested its first general election in 2007
Quebec general election, 2007
The Quebec general election of 2007 was held in the Canadian province of Quebec on March 26, 2007 to elect members of the 38th National Assembly of Quebec. The Quebec Liberal Party led by Jean Charest managed to win a plurality of seats, but were reduced to a minority government, Quebec's first in...
and elected its first MNA in 2008.
Leaders of the NPD-Québec
- Robert ClicheRobert ClicheRobert was a Canadian judge, lawyer and politician, who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party of Quebec, as well as the Quebec lieutenant to federal New Democratic Party leader Tommy Douglas, from 1964 to 1968...
(1964-1968) - Roland Morin (1970-1973)
- Henri-François GautrinHenri-François GautrinHenri-François Gautrin is a Quebec politician, teacher and physician. He is the current Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Verdun in the Montreal region...
(1973-1979) - none
- Jean-Paul HarneyJohn Paul HarneyJohn Paul Harney is a professor and former Canadian politician.Harney ran as a candidate for the New Democratic Party throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He was the Provincial Secretary for the Ontario New Democratic Party from 1966 to 1970...
(1985-1988) - Roland Morin (1987-1989)
- Gaétan NadeauGaétan NadeauGaétan Nadeau is a politician and author in the Canadian province of Quebec. He led the New Democratic Party of Quebec from April to September 1989 and helped bring about its autonomy from the New Democratic Party of Canada....
(1989-1990) - Michel Parenteau (1990-1992)
- Jean-François Sirois (1992-1994)
- Jocelyne Dupuis (1994-1996)
- Paul RosePaul RosePaul Rose, born October 16, 1943, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, is a Quebec sovereigntist terrorist who was convicted of murder and kidnapping of Quebec cabinet minister Pierre Laporte in 1970...
(1996-2002)
Electoral results (Quebec general elections)
| General election | # of candidates | # of elected candidates | % of popular vote |
| 1966 (NPDQ) | The party did not run candidates in this election. | ||
| 1970 (NPDQ) | 13 | 0 | 0.15% |
| 1973 (NPDQ) | The party did not run candidates in this election. | ||
| 1976 (coal.†) | 21 | 0 | 0.05% |
| 1981 (NPDQ) | The party did not run candidates in this election. | ||
| 1985 (NPDQ) | 90 | 0 | 2.42% |
| 1989 (NPDQ) | 55 | 0 | 1.22% |
| 1994 (NPDQ) | 41 | 0 | 0.85% |
| 1998 (PDS) | 97 | 0 | 0.59% |
†coalition Nouveau Parti démocratique du Québec / Regroupement des militants syndicaux
Regroupement des militants syndicaux
The Regroupement des militants syndicaux or RMS was a political organization founded in 1974 by members of the Groupe socialiste des travailleurs du Québec involved in the three main trade-unions in Quebec to rally trade unionists into political action.On the political scene, the RMS was deeply...
Attempt at recreation
During the 2006 Convention of the federal NDP, held in Quebec CityQuebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, the idea of recreating the NPDQ was brought up. However, the idea failed to win support at the New Democratic Party-Quebec Section's convention in November 2006 in Saint-Jérôme.
See also
- Politics of QuebecPolitics of QuebecThe politics of Quebec are centred on a provincial government resembling that of the other Canadian provinces, namely a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. The capital of the province is Quebec City, where the Lieutenant Governor, Premier, the legislature, and cabinet reside.The...
- List of Quebec general elections
- National Assembly of QuebecNational Assembly of QuebecThe National Assembly of Quebec is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec. The Lieutenant Governor and the National Assembly compose the Parliament of Quebec, which operates in a fashion similar to those of other British-style parliamentary systems.The National Assembly was formerly the...
- Timeline of Quebec historyTimeline of Quebec historyThis article presents a detailed timeline of Quebec history. Events taking place outside Quebec, for example in English Canada, the United States, Britain or France, may be included when they are considered to have had a significant impact on Quebec's history....
- Political parties in Quebec