Nationalist (Canada)

Nationalist (Canada)

Though never an organized political party, a number of candidates have run as Nationalists in Canadian elections. In the 1887 election, six candidates aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada ran in Quebec as Nationalist candidates though only one, Guillame Amyot, (a former supporter of the Conservatives who latterly became a Nationalist Conservative ) was elected. The Nationalist label was used occasionally by Liberal supporters until 1912.

In this period the term nationalism in Quebec referred to Canadian nationalism (as opposed to British imperialism ) rather than a desire for an independent Quebec. The most prominent nationalist in Quebec was Henri Bourassa though he, himself, never sat as a Nationalist MP but as a Liberal or Independent.

Several other candidates, all French-Canadian and all but one of them running in Quebec, have run as Nationalists since then but these were not aligned with either the Liberals or Conservatives and none have one election. The most notable of these candidates was Adrian Arcand, a fascist who ran as a Nationalist in 1953 coming in a strong second.

See also:

Nationalism

Politics of Quebec

List of political parties in Canada