Quebec general election, 1960 |
The Quebec general election on June 22, 1960 was one of the most significant elections in Quebec history,
rivaled perhaps only by the 1976 general
election. The incumbent Union Nationale under Antonio Barrette was defeated by the Quebec Liberal Party under Jean Lesage.
The 1960 election set the stage for the Quiet Revolution, a
major social transformation of all aspects of Quebec society throughout the 1960s. Among
many other changes the influence and power of the Catholic church
fell sharply as Quebec became a secular society.
This election put an end to 16 years of continuous Union Nationale
rule, much of it under Maurice Duplessis. Duplessis had died not
long before however, and his successor Paul Sauvé also died suddenly after
only a few months in office. The Union Nationale was thus perhaps in slight disarray under their third leader (Antonio Barrette) in less than a year. After the sweeping transformations
of the Quiet Revolution, the Duplessis period was sometimes derisively referred to as La Grande Noirceur (the Great
Darkness). This characterization usually gives all credit to the liberals and tends to neglect the work started by Paul Sauvé in
a rather stunning hundred days of change.
See also
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