The 1996 Bloc Québécois leadership election was the leadership election to replace
Lucien Bouchard after he left the
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois (BQ; , "Québécois people, Quebecer Voting bloc, Bloc") is a list of federal political parties in Canada, federal political party in Canada devoted to Quebec nationalism and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty movement, Que ...
to become
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
of
Quebec.
Bloc MP
Michel Gauthier
Michel Gauthier (; February 18, 1950 – May 30, 2020) was a Canadian politician, who served as leader of the Bloc Québécois from 1996 to 1997. As the party was the Official Opposition in the Parliament of Canada, Gauthier was also the Le ...
won the election and became
Leader of the Official Opposition.
Gauthier's lack of profile resulted in some opposition parties mocking him as being the "faceless leader" of the opposition, as he was largely a political unknown in most of Canada and even in Quebec.
[ His leadership was unpopular with the ]caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
due to alleged conservative views and his lack of "charisma or authority" when compared to Bouchard.[
]
Candidates
Result
Sources
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
1996 elections in Canada
1996 in Quebec
Bloc Québécois leadership election
{{Canada-election-stub