The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a
sovereignist and
social democratic
Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...
provincial
political party in Quebec,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. The PQ advocates
national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
from Canada and establishing a
sovereign state
A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...
. The PQ has also promoted the possibility of maintaining a loose political and economic
sovereignty-association between Quebec and Canada. The party traditionally has support from the
labour movement
The labour movement is the collective organisation of working people to further their shared political and economic interests. It consists of the trade union or labour union movement, as well as political parties of labour. It can be considere ...
; however, unlike most
other social democratic parties, its ties with organized labour are informal. Members and supporters of the PQ are nicknamed ''péquistes'' ( , ), a French word derived from the pronunciation of the party's initials.
The party is an associate member of
COPPPAL. The party has strong informal ties to the
Bloc Québécois (BQ, whose members are known as "Bloquistes"), the federal party that has also advocated for the secession of Quebec from Canada, but the two are not linked organizationally. As with its federal counterpart, the Parti Québécois has been supported by a wide range of voters in Quebec, from large sections of
organized labour to more conservative rural voters.
History
Formation
The PQ is the result of the 1968 merger between the
Mouvement Souveraineté-Association, founded by
René Lévesque
René Lévesque ( ; August 24, 1922 – November 1, 1987) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 23rd premier of Quebec from 1976 to 1985. He was the first Québécois political leader since Confederation to seek, ...
(a former
Quebec Liberal Party
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; , PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955.
The QLP has traditionally supported a form of Quebec federalist ideology with nuance ...
cabinet minister), and the
Ralliement national.
Following the creation of the PQ, the
Rassemblement pour l'Indépendance Nationale held a general assembly that voted to dissolve the RIN. Its former members were invited to join the new Parti Québécois.
The PQ's primary goals were to obtain political, economic and social autonomy for the province of Quebec. Lévesque introduced the strategy of referendums early in the 1970s.
Lévesque and the PQ's first government
The PQ faced its first electoral test in the
1970 provincial election, winning seven seats. However, Lévesque was unable to get into the renamed National Assembly. Although it lost one seat in
1973
Events January
* January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...
, the decimation of the other parties, particularly the , allowed it to become the official opposition even though Lévesque was still unable to win a seat.
In the
1976 provincial election, the Parti Québécois won government for the first time and took 71 of the 110 seats available. Lévesque became the
Premier of Quebec
The premier of Quebec ( (masculine) or eminine is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the Coalition Avenir Québec, sworn in on October 18, 2018, following tha ...
. This provided cause for celebration among many
French-speaking Quebecers, while it resulted in an acceleration of the migration of the province's
Anglophone
The English-speaking world comprises the 88 countries and territories in which English is an official, administrative, or cultural language. In the early 2000s, between one and two billion people spoke English, making it the largest language ...
population and related economic activity toward
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
.
The first PQ government was known as the "republic of professors" because of the large number of scholars in Lévesque's
cabinet. The PQ was the first government to recognize the rights of
Aboriginal peoples to self-determination, insofar as this self-determination did not affect the territorial integrity of Quebec. The PQ passed laws on public consultations and the financing of political parties, which ensured equal financing of political parties and limited contributions by individuals to $3000. However, the most prominent legacy of the PQ is the
Charter of the French Language (Bill 101), a framework law which defines the linguistic primacy of French and seeks to make French the common public language of Quebec. It allowed the advancement of francophones towards management roles, until then largely out of their reach. Despite the fact that 85% of the population spoke French and most of them did not understand English, the language of management was English in most medium and large businesses. Critics, both Francophone and Anglophone, have however criticized the charter for restraining citizens' linguistic school choice, as it only permits anglophones to attend English-language schools funded by the state (private schools remained an option for those who could afford tuition). The Parti Québécois initiated the
1980 Quebec referendum
The 1980 Quebec independence referendum was the first referendum in Quebec on the place of Quebec within Canada and whether Quebec should pursue a path toward sovereignty. The referendum was called by Quebec's Parti Québécois (PQ) government ...
seeking a mandate to begin negotiation for
sovereignty-association. It was rejected by 60 per cent of voters.
The party was re-elected in the
1981 election, but in November 1984 it experienced the most severe
internal crisis of its existence. Lévesque wanted to focus on governing Quebec rather than sovereignty, and also wanted to adopt a more conciliatory approach on constitutional issues. This angered the more ardent sovereigntists, known as the
''purs et durs''. Lévesque was forced to resign as a result. In September 1985,
the party leadership election chose
Pierre-Marc Johnson as his successor.
Despite its social democratic past, the PQ failed to gain admission into the
Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism, consisting mostly of Social democracy, social democratic political parties and Labour mov ...
, after the membership application was vetoed by the federal
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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1985 defeat
The PQ led by Johnson was defeated by the
Quebec Liberal Party
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; , PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955.
The QLP has traditionally supported a form of Quebec federalist ideology with nuance ...
in the
1985 election that saw
Robert Bourassa return as premier. The Liberals served in office for two terms and attempted to negotiate a constitutional settlement with the rest of Canada but with the failure of the
Meech Lake Accord and the
Charlottetown Accord, two packages of proposed amendments to the
Canadian constitution, the question of Quebec's status remained unresolved and the Quebec sovereignty movement revived.
Return to power under Parizeau
The PQ returned to power under the leadership of hardline sovereigntist
Jacques Parizeau in the
1994 Quebec election. This saw the PQ win 77 seats and 44% of the vote, on a promise to hold an independence referendum within a year. The following year, Parizeau called the
1995 Quebec referendum proposing negotiations on sovereignty. Again, the sovereigntists lost the vote. The final count showed 49.42% of voters supported negotiations that could eventually lead to sovereignty. On the night of the defeat, an emotionally drained Premier Parizeau stated that the loss was caused by
"money and ethnic votes" (which led to accusations that Parizeau was racist) as well as by the divided votes amongst francophones. Parizeau resigned the next day (as he is alleged to have planned in case of a defeat).
Bouchard government
Lucien Bouchard
Lucien Bouchard (; born December 22, 1938) is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat and retired politician.
A minister for two years in the 24th Canadian Ministry, Mulroney cabinet, Bouchard then founded and led the Bloc Québécois and became Leader ...
, a former member of Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney (March 20, 1939 – February 29, 2024) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993.
Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studi ...
's
Cabinet and later founder of the
Bloc Québécois, a federal-level sovereigntist party, succeeded Parizeau as PQ leader, but chose not to call another referendum due to the absence of "winning conditions". Bouchard's government then balanced the provincial budget – a feat achieved in Canada only by the federal government and a few of the ten Canadian provinces at that point – by reducing
government spending
Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual or ...
, including social programs. The PQ was re-elected in the
1998 election, despite receiving fewer votes than the Quebec Liberal Party led by former federal deputy prime minister
Jean Charest. Bouchard resigned in 2001, and was succeeded as PQ leader and Quebec Premier by
Bernard Landry, a former PQ Finance minister. Under Landry's leadership, the party lost the
2003 election to Jean Charest's Liberals.
Return to opposition
Mid-late 2004 was difficult for Landry's leadership, which was being contested. A vote was held during the party's June 2005 convention to determine whether Landry continued to have the confidence of the party membership. Landry said he wanted at least 80% of approval and after gaining 76.2% approval on the confidence vote from party membership on 4 June 2005, Landry announced his intention to resign.
Louise Harel had been chosen to replace him until a new leader,
André Boisclair, was elected 15 November 2005, through the party's
2005 leadership election. At the time of Boisclair's election, the PQ was as much as 20% ahead of the Liberals in opinion polls, suggesting that Boisclair would lead them to a landslide majority government in the next election.
Splintering on the right and the left
Progressives on the left wing of the PQ perceived a rightward move by the party towards
neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pe ...
under Bouchard, Landry and Boisclair. In 2006, a new left-wing party,
Québec solidaire, was formed which included many activists who likely would formerly have been members or supporters of the PQ. Over subsequent elections, the QS attracted increasing support from left-wing sovereigntists disillusioned with the PQ. At the same time on the right, the ADQ and later the
Coalition Avenir Québec
The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative attracted the votes of right-wing and soft sovereigntists who eventually become
Quebec autonomists and
Canadian federalists while retaining their Quebec nationalist identities. These political developments resulted in the PQ being squeezed from both sides.
Third place
The PQ was unable to maintain the momentum it briefly had under Boisclair, and in the
2007 provincial election, the party fell to 36 seats and behind the conservative
Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) in number of seats and the popular vote: this was the first time since 1973 that the party did not form the government or the
Official Opposition. Boisclair said that the voters clearly did not support a strategy of a rapid referendum in the first mandate of a PQ government. Instead of a policy convention following the election, the party held a presidents' council. The party caucus in the provincial legislative assembly was said to have supported Boisclair continuing as leader.
On 8 May 2007, Boisclair announced his resignation as leader of the PQ.
This was effective immediately, although Boisclair confirmed he would remain within the PQ caucus for the time being. He was replaced by veteran MNA
François Gendron, pending a leadership race and convention.

Former Bloc Québécois leader
Gilles Duceppe was the first to announce his intention to run for party leadership, on 11 May 2007. He was followed the same day by
Pauline Marois
Pauline Marois (; born March 29, 1949) is a retired Canadian politician, who served as the 30th premier of Quebec from 2012 to 2014. Marois had been a Member of the National Assembly (Quebec), member of the National Assembly in various ridings ...
. In a surprise move, Duceppe withdrew on the 12th – leaving Marois the only declared candidate. No other candidates came forward, and on 26 June 2007, Marois won the leadership by
acclamation
An acclamation is a form of election that does not use a ballot. It derives from the ancient Roman word ''acclamatio'', a kind of ritual greeting and expression of approval towards imperial officials in certain social contexts.
Voting Voice vot ...
.
In June 2011, the party was shaken when four of its most prominent MNAs — popular actor
Pierre Curzi, former cabinet minister
Louise Beaudoin, and
Lisette Lapointe, the wife of former premier
Jacques Parizeau, and
Jean-Martin Aussant — quit the party to sit as
independents. They disagreed with Marois's support for a bill changing the law to permit an agreement between the
City of Québec and
Quebecor
Quebecor Inc. is a Canadian diversified media and telecommunications company serving Quebec based in Montreal. It was spelled Quebecor in both English and French until May 2012, when shareholders voted to add the acute accent, Québecor, in ...
Inc. concerning the management of the new sports and entertainment complex in Quebec City.
Unrest continued later in the month when a fifth MNA,
Benoit Charette, also quit, citing his dissatisfaction with the party's sole focus being sovereignty. Beaudoin rejoined the PQ caucus in 2012.
Marois minority government
The party won a
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...
under Marois in the
2012 provincial election with 54 of 125 seats in the National Assembly. It embarked on a program of "sovereigntist governance" in relations with the rest of Canada, to return Quebec to balanced budgets through higher taxes and debt reduction, to increase the use of French in public services, and to address resource development in Northern Quebec. However the PQ's 'new Bill 101' did not pass. The centrepiece of the government's program was a
Quebec Charter of Values which would have curtailed minority religious identity by banning the wearing of religious symbols by those in the employ of the government, particularly Sikh turbans, Muslim veils and Jewish kippahs.
2014 defeat
Based on the charter's growing popularity among francophones, Marois called an early election for 7 April 2014 in an attempt to win a majority government. Despite leading in the polls when the writ was dropped, the campaign went badly due to several mishaps. The recruitment of
star candidate Pierre Karl Péladeau, whose comments made sovereignty and the prospect of another referendum a focus of the campaign, as well as feminist
Janette Bertrand suggesting that wealthy Muslim men were taking over swimming pools, among other incidents badly hurt the PQ. Marois' government was defeated by the Liberals, led by
Philippe Couillard, in the
2014 provincial election which resulted in a Liberal majority government. The PQ won 25% of the vote and 30 seats, its worst result in terms of popular vote since
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
. Marois lost her own seat, and announced her intention to resign as PQ leader that night.
Stéphane Bédard was chosen interim parliamentary leader by the PQ caucus on 10 April 2014.
In the 20 October 2014
Lévis by-election, PQ candidate Alexandre Bégin came in third place, with 8.28% of the popular vote, only narrowly beating Québec Solidaire.
Péladeau leadership
On 27 November 2014,
Pierre Karl Péladeau announced his intentions to run for PQ's leadership, joining
Bernard Drainville,
Martine Ouellet,
Jean-François Lisée,
Alexandre Cloutier, and Pierre Céré.
Despite a fiercely contested race, Péladeau was the frontrunner for much of the campaign, causing Jean-François Lisée to drop out in January 2015, Bernard Drainville to drop out on 22 April 2015, and Pierre Céré to follow Drainville only five days before the leadership election.
On 15 May 2015,
Pierre Karl Péladeau was elected permanent leader.
On 2 May 2016, Péladeau announced that he was retiring from politics to dedicate more time to his family.
Jean-François Lisée leadership
Jean-François Lisée was
elected leader of Parti Québécois on 7 October 2016.
Lisée charged
Manon Massé with reneging in unsuccessful deliberations for a putative electoral alliance between the Parti Québécois and
Québec Solidaire in 2017.
Collapse and brief loss of official party status
For the
2018 provincial election, the PQ ruled out holding a referendum on sovereignty until 2022 at the earliest.
[ With the sovereignty issue taken off the table for the first time in almost half a century, the 2018 election unfolded in a historic way, being the first time in a half century a party other than the Parti Québécois or Liberals were elected to power, with a ]Coalition Avenir Québec
The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative majority win. It also marked the first time in 42 years that the Parti Québécois did not win enough seats to maintain official status in the legislature. With only 10 seats won, not only did it lose official status, but was relegated to third place (tied with Québec solidaire). The PQ was reduced to its smallest presence in the National Assembly since its first election in 1970. In this election the Parti Québécois only garnered 17% of the popular vote, the lowest score in party's history at the time.
With few exceptions, its support bled to the CAQ, which took several ridings that had been in PQ hands for 40 years or more, by large margins in many cases. A number of longtime PQ supporters defected to the CAQ because they no longer believed sovereignty was a realistic goal. Notably, the party was completely shut out of Montreal for the first time in memory, including its traditional stronghold in the heavily francophone eastern portion. Historically, when the PQ won government, the eastern half of the Island of Montreal was coated light blue. Many younger sovereigntists defected to Québec Solidaire.
Leader Jean-François Lisée was defeated in his own riding and resigned thereafter, accepting the blame for his party's failure and collapse. After 50 years in the forefront of Quebec politics, the Parti Québécois had been pushed into marginal status. According to ''The Globe and Mail
''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...
,'' within hours of the results being known, there was speculation that the party's very survival was in doubt; there were concerns that it was no longer capable of attracting enough support "to justify its political usefulness". Christian Bourque of Montreal-based pollster Léger Marketing suggested that the PQ was likely finished in its present form, and would have to merge with another sovereigntist party to avoid fading into irrelevance. On 27 November 2018, the CAQ granted both the PQ and Québec Solidaire official status in the legislature, despite the parties being short on seats and percentage of the popular vote in order to qualify.
However, on 11 March 2019, Catherine Fournier, the youngest MNA in the party and the province and the only PQ MNA from Greater Montreal, resigned from the Parti Québécois to sit as an independent, claiming the party had lost its way. At the same time, several members of the PQ's youth wing expressed concern that the party might not have a future. Fournier's defection dropped the party into fourth place, losing its standing as second opposition and potentially losing their official party status once again.
The next leadership election occurred on 9 October 2020, with lawyer Paul St-Pierre Plamondon being elected as the tenth Parti Québécois leader.
Fading out and loss of official party status
The 2022 provincial election saw even further erosion and an unprecedented loss of support for the Parti Quebecois. Not only did the party once again not form government or the official opposition, but it was reduced to its smallest-ever presence in the legislature, with only three seats won. The previous low was its second election, in 1973, where the party won six seats. Although new party leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon managed to win his seat, the PQ lost its official party status and came in a distant fourth place. It won only 14 percent of the vote, its lowest ever. The movement of most voter support over to the CAQ and other nationalist parties put into question the party's relevance and its ability to survive in future.
Barred from Quebec legislature
On December 1, 2022, the PQ's three newly elected members were barred from the Quebec legislature following their refusal to swear an oath to the King, as required by the Constitution Act, 1867
The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 3) (),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 1867'' (BNA Act), ...
. In response, on December 9, 2022, the CAQ passed a bill abolishing the requirement, allowing the PQ into the legislature by early 2023, however its legality is being questioned.
After the 2022 provincial election, the PQ held a leadership confidence vote in March 2023. Plamondon broke a record for the PQ votes of confidence, with 98.51% support.
Since the 2022 election, the PQ saw an increase in its support in polls with them polling as the second largest party but still behind the CAQ.
On October 2, 2023, the PQ won its fourth seat with its win in the 2023 Jean-Talon provincial by-election, with Pascal Paradis being elected MNA.
Since November 2023, the PQ has been polling as the largest party with support over 30%. Their polling has reportedly been affected by the 2025 United States trade war with Canada and Mexico.
On March 17, 2025, the PQ won its fifth seat with its win in the 2025 Terrebonne provincial by-election, with Catherine Gentilcore being elected MNA.
Relationship with the Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois (BQ) is a federal political party founded in 1990 by former Progressive Conservative MP Lucien Bouchard
Lucien Bouchard (; born December 22, 1938) is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat and retired politician.
A minister for two years in the 24th Canadian Ministry, Mulroney cabinet, Bouchard then founded and led the Bloc Québécois and became Leader ...
. It has traditionally had close ties to the Parti Québécois and shares its principal objective of sovereignty
Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...
. The two parties have frequently shared political candidates, and have supported each other during election campaigns. The two parties have a similar membership and voter base. Prominent members of either party often attend and speak at both organizations' public events. Gilles Duceppe, the former Bloc leader, is also the son of Jean Duceppe, a Quebec actor who helped found the PQ after having been a founding member of the New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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In June 2014, Mario Beaulieu, a former PQ riding president and Bloc candidate, was elected leader of the Bloc Québécois. Notwithstanding his previous ties to both parties, Beaulieu has been critical of what he sees as a too timid approach to sovereignty by both the Bloc and PQ. Beaulieu's election as Bloc leader was more warmly received by the PQ's rival party, Option nationale, than by the PQ.
Ties to far right groups
In 2018, the ''Montreal Gazette
''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
It is the only English-language daily newspape ...
'' reported on an investigation into two closed Facebook groups, whose stated aim is to bolster the PQ, by anti-racist activist Jeff Ray. Ray found that many participants, while supporters of the PQ, were also members of far-right groups like Storm Alliance. This included "grassroots activists to aspiring candidates to officials on the executive council" on the PQ side, and "key personalities of the far right" on the other.
Logo
The party's distinctive logo was designed in 1968 by painter and poet Roland Giguère. It consists of a stylised letter Q, represented by a blue circle broken by a red arrow. The creator meant it as an allegory
As a List of narrative techniques, literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a wikt:narrative, narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political signi ...
of the Parti Québécois breaking the circle of colonialism
Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an Imperialism, imperialist project, colonialism c ...
which he claimed Canada was imposing on Quebec and opening Quebec upon the world and the future. The PQ has made very few significant modifications to its logo during its history. In 1985 it made the circle and arrow slightly thicker, and placed the tip of the latter at the centre of the circle. The original saw it span the whole diameter. When placed upon a blue background instead of a white one, the circle was commonly turned to white, the single main design variation currently observed.
The party revealed a new logo on 21 February 2007, at the beginning of the 2007 provincial election campaign. While maintaining the basic style of past logos, the Q was redesigned and modernized. In addition, the tail of the Q was recoloured green.
This logo was replaced in 2021 with a new logo that incorporated the fleur-de-lis
The ''fleur-de-lis'', also spelled ''fleur-de-lys'' (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, and mean and respectively). Most notably, the ''fleur-de-lis'' ...
into the letter " Q".
Party policy
The Parti Québécois centres on the protection of the Franco-Québécois identity, up to or including the ultimate result of sovereignty-association. Sovereigntism, however, is 'Article 1' in its party program.
After then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy rejected the long-standing "non-interference, non-indifference" stance towards Quebec should it seek sovereignty in 2009, PQ leader and Premier Pauline Marois' visit to France in October 2012 saw her reinstate it with French President François Hollande. Also during her visit, Marois commented that "Canada's current foreign policy corresponds to neither our values nor our interests".
The PQ delivered a brief to the reasonable accommodation commission on minorities, which conducted hearings across the province. The commission briefing looked to reformulate the relations between Quebec's francophone
The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...
and minority populations. Its task was to be a platform for the PQ's protectionism of French.
Marois stated there is nothing dogmatic in Francophones wishing to declare their existence even if it includes developing legislation requiring newcomers to have a basic understanding of French before becoming citizens of Quebec. (Note that there are no official citizens of Quebec; residents of Quebec are citizens of Canada.)
Further to her desire to protect French in Quebec, during Marois' visit to France in October 2012, she recommended that the "French elite" conduct themselves only in French on the international scene. However, some of Marois' international critics scoffed at her pretension that the "French elite" were Québécois.
Marois stated the PQ understands the arrival of newcomers is attractive and they "contribute greatly" to Quebec's growth, but she stated that does not imply that to better assimilate them that "we must erase our own history."
As of 2014, the PQ electoral program describes the party's main commitment: "Aspiring to political liberty, the Parti Québécois has as its first objective to achieve the sovereignty of Quebec after consulting the population by a referendum to be held at the moment that the government judges appropriate."
Other electoral issues were the Quebec Charter of Values, and language.
Like the Coalition Avenir Québec
The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative , the PQ supported the Quebec ban on face covering but also argued the ban is not extensive enough.
Slogans
These are the slogans used by the Parti Québécois in general election campaigns throughout its history. They are displayed with an unofficial translation. The elections in which the PQ won or remained in power are in bold.
* 1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
: ''OUI'' – Yes
* 1973
Events January
* January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...
: ''J'ai le goût du Québec'' – I have a taste for Quebec
* 1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
: ''On a besoin d'un vrai gouvernement'' – We need a real government
* 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
: ''Faut rester forts au Québec'' – We must remain strong in Quebec
* 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
: ''Le Québec avec Johnson'' – Québec with Johnson
* 1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
: ''Je prends le parti du Québec'' – I'm choosing Quebec's party / I'm taking Quebec's side (double meaning)
* 1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
: ''L'autre façon de gouverner'' – The other way of governing
* 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
: ''J'ai confiance'' – I am confident / I trust
* 2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
: ''Restons forts'' – Let us stay strong
* 2007
2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year.
Events
January
* January 1
**Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
: ''Reconstruisons notre Québec'' – Let us rebuild our Quebec
* 2008
2008 was designated as:
*International Year of Languages
*International Year of Planet Earth
*International Year of the Potato
*International Year of Sanitation
The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
: ''Québec gagnant avec Pauline'' – Quebec winning with Pauline
* 2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
: ''À nous de choisir'' – The choice is ours
* 2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
: ''Plus prospère, plus fort, plus indépendant, plus accueillant'' – More prosperous, stronger, more independent, more welcoming
* 2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
: ''Sérieusement'' – Seriously
* 2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
: ''Le Québec qui s'assume. Pour vrai.'' – A Quebec that accepts itself. For real
Party leaders
Until 5 June 2005, the office of Leader of the Parti Québécois was known as President of the Parti Québécois.
Leaders in the legislature
When a Parti Québécois leader does not have a seat in the National Assembly, another member leads the party in the legislature.
Party presidents
Until 5 June 2005, the office of President of the Parti Québécois was known as First Vice-president of the Parti Québécois.
Leadership elections
* Parti Québécois leadership elections
* 1985 Parti Québécois leadership election
* 2005 Parti Québécois leadership election
* 2007 Parti Québécois leadership election
* 2015 Parti Québécois leadership election
* 2016 Parti Québécois leadership election
* 2020 Parti Québécois leadership election
General election results
See also
* SPQ Libre
* Parti Québécois Crisis, 1984
* Politics of Quebec
The 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 Quebec is Quebec City, where the Lieutenant Governor, Pr ...
* History of Quebec
* List of political parties in Quebec
The following is a list of all political parties in the Canadian province of Quebec.
Parties represented in the National Assembly
Other registered parties
Other parties authorized by the Director-General of Elections:
Unregistered parties ...
* Sovereigntist events and strategies
* Secessionist movements of Canada
* Parti Québécois leadership elections
References
Further reading
* Lévesque, Michel and Pelletier, Martin (Sept. 2007)
''Le Parti québécois : bibliographie 1968–2007''
Bibliothèque de l'Assemblée nationale du Québec, 244 pages
* Dubuc, Pierre (2003). ''L'autre histoire de l'indépendance : de Pierre Vallières à Charles Gagnon, de Claude Morin à Paul Desmarais'', Trois-Pistoles: Éditions Trois-Pistoles, 288 pages
* Fraser, Graham (2001). ''René Lévesque & the Parti Québécois in Power'', Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 434 pages irst Ed. Toronto: Macmillan, 1984* Godin, Pierre (1997). ''René Lévesque, Héros malgré lui'', Éditions Boréal
* Lévesque, René (1986). ''Memoirs'', Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 368 pages ranslated by Philip Stratford* Bernier Arcand, Philippe, ''Le Parti québécois : d'un nationalisme à l'autre'', Montréal, Poètes de brousse, 2015, 160 p. ().
* Panneton, Jean-Charles, ''Le gouvernement Lévesque'', t. 1 : De la genèse du PQ au 15 novembre 1976, Québec, Septentrion, 2016.
* Panneton, Jean-Charles, ''Le gouvernement Lévesque'', t. 2 : Du temps des réformes au référendum de 1980, Québec, Septentrion, 2017.
Montreal Gazette, 15 October 2012.
External links
*
Parti québécois' parliamentary group website
(archived)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parti Quebecois
Secessionist organizations in Canada
Pro-independence parties
Quebec sovereignty movement
Quebec nationalism
Social democratic parties in Canada
Republicanism in Canada
Organizations based in Montreal
Provincial political parties in Quebec
Political parties established in 1968
Political parties of minorities in Canada
1968 establishments in Quebec