Strength in Democracy

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Strength in Democracy
Forces et Démocratie
Active party
Leader vacant
Founded October 21, 2014 (October 21, 2014)
Split from Bloc Québécois and
New Democratic Party
Headquarters Matane, Quebec
Ideology Social democracy,
Regionalism,
Quebec nationalism,
Participatory democracy
Political position Centre-left[1][2]
Colours Green, White, Blue
Seats in the House of Commons
0 / 338
Seats in the Senate
0 / 105
Website
www.strengthindemocracy.org (en)
www.forcesetdemocratie.org (fr)

Strength in Democracy[3] (French: Forces et Démocratie, French pronunciation: ​[fɔʁs e demɔkʁasi]) is a Canadian federal political party founded in 2014, by two Quebec Members of Parliament (MPs). From October 2014 to October 2015, the party was represented in the Canadian House of Commons by its two founding members, Jean-François Fortin and Jean-François Larose. The party was led from its inception by Fortin.

The party failed to win a seat in the 2015 federal election, and both its sitting MPs were defeated.[4] Fortin announced his resignation as Leader on 3 January 2016.[5]

Origins[edit]

The party was formed on October 21, 2014 by Fortin, a member of the Bloc Québécois, and Repentigny MP Jean-François Larose, a member of the New Democratic Party. On that day, the two MPs claimed that the four major federal parties in Quebec (the Conservatives, New Democratic Party (NDP), Liberals, and Bloc Québécois) were focused on power and politics over representing their constituents.[6][7]

Fortin (who had run for the leadership of the Bloc Québécois in 2011) had left the Bloc Québécois in August 2014 to sit as an independent MP, citing disapproval of new BQ leader Mario Beaulieu.[8]

The party announced that it would run candidates outside of Quebec in the 2015 federal election under the name "Strength in Democracy", and its first candidate was announced in Peterborough—Kawartha.[3] Jennifer McCreath, who ran for the party in Avalon, was the first transgender candidate in a federal election.[9]

Independent MP Manon Perreault, who had been expelled from the New Democratic Party after being convicted for mischief, was announced on August 12, 2015, as the Strength in Democracy candidate in Montcalm where she sought re-election.[10]

References[edit]

External links[edit]