Quebec politics The politics of Quebec are centred on a provincial government resembling that of the other Canadian provinces, namely a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. The capital of Quebec is Quebec City, where the Lieutenant Governor, Prem ...

, autonomism is a stance on the national question which supports devolving greater powers to Quebec while remaining a

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

, often through

asymmetric federalism Asymmetric federalism or asymmetrical federalism is found in a federation or other types of union in which different constituent states possess different powers: one or more of the substates has considerably more autonomy than the other substate ...

. It is a middle position between

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

and

federalism Federalism is a mode of government that combines a general level of government (a central or federal government) with a regional level of sub-unit governments (e.g., provinces, State (sub-national), states, Canton (administrative division), ca ...

. Autonomism was first proposed by

Maurice Duplessis Maurice Le Noblet Duplessis, (; April 20, 1890 – September 7, 1959) byname "Le Chef" (, "The Boss"), was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 16th premier of Quebec. A Conservatism in Canada, conservative, Quebec nationalism, ...

; it is mostly supported by

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

political parties, including

Coalition Avenir Québec The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative

, which has been the ruling party of Quebec since

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

. Drawing inspiration from

René Lévesque René Lévesque ( ; August 24, 1922 – November 1, 1987) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 23rd premier of Quebec from 1976 to 1985. He was the first Québécois political leader since Confederation to seek, ...

's "

beau risque In Quebec politics, ''le beau risque'' (, ''the noble risk'' or ''the good risk'') is a political catch phrase describing the "risk" the Parti Québécois (PQ or "''péquistes''") took in asking Quebecers to support federal Progressive Conservativ ...

", and

Robert Bourassa Robert Bourassa (; July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd premier of Quebec from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the Liberal Party of Quebec, he served a total of just ...

's work on the

Meech Lake Accord The Meech Lake Accord () was a series of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and all 10 Canadian provincial Premier (Canada), premiers. It was intended to ...

and

Charlottetown Accord The Charlottetown Accord () was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canada, Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendums in Canada, referendum on October ...

, Quebec autonomists propose: * Setting out the procedures for constitutional change * A sharing of jurisdictions between the federal government and Quebec * Framework for federal spending powers * Institutional reform * Reform of intergovernmental policies In a speech to delegates of the ADQ, party leader

Mario Dumont Mario Dumont (born May 19, 1970) is a Canadian television personality and former politician in Quebec, Canada. He was a Member of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNA), and the leader of the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ), from 1994 to 2 ...

, on 8 May 2006, Dumont said that Quebec should seek to re-open negotiations with the federal government over Quebec's status in Confederation, and should eventually ratify the

Constitution of Canada The Constitution of Canada () is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents are an amalgamation of various ...

References and notes

See also