In 1994 voters in the Canadian province of Quebec elected the Parti Québecois to a majority of seats in the National Assembly. The victory put PQ president Jacques Parizeau (born 1930) in the post of premier.

On September 12, 1994, voters in the Canadian province of Quebec elected the Parti Québecois (PQ) to 77 of 125 seats comprising the National Assembly, that province's legislature. The victory put PQ president Jacques Parizeau, a longtime advocate of independence for the largely French-speaking province, in the post of premier. Jacques Parizeau had repeatedly asserted that a vote for the PQ was a vote for independence. His promise at the time of his election: putting a referendum on secession before the voters of Quebec within a year. Although, the election results were seen more as a reflection of Quebec's anger at the ruling Liberal Party, which had ruled the province for nine years, rather...