Quebec referendum of 1980

The nationalist fervour of the 1960s contributed to the founding of the Parti Québécois on 11 Oct. 1968, with a platform of promoting the independence of Quebec. During the 1976 election campaign party leader René Lévesque promised to hold a referendum on the subject during his first term of office. In December 1979, as premier, Lévesque set out the details of a referendum on sovereignty-association. It would deal with the request for a mandate to negotiate a new agreement with the rest of Canada as well as the idea of a second referendum to consult the people on the results of discussions with the federal government following the first referendum. On 20 May 1980, the day of the referendum, Lévesque suffered the bitterest defeat of his political career: with an 85.6 per cent turnout, 59.56 per cent of Quebec’s voters rejected sovereignty-association.