Daniel Johnson, Sr.
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| Daniel Johnson, Sr. | |
 The Hon. Francis Daniel Johnson |
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20th Premier of Quebec
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| In office June 16, 1966 – September 26, 1968 |
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| Preceded by | Jean Lesage |
| Succeeded by | Jean-Jacques Bertrand |
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| Born | April 9, 1915 Danville, Quebec |
| Died | September 26, 1968 (aged 53) |
| Political party | Union Nationale |
| Spouse | Reine Gagné |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Francis Daniel Johnson, Sr., PC (April 9, 1915 – September 26, 1968) was a Quebec politician and Premier of Quebec from 1966 until his death in 1968. [1]
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[edit] Background
Johnson was born in Danville, Quebec, Canada. He was the son of Francis Johnson, an anglophone journalist of Irish heritage, and Marie-Adéline Daniel, a Québécoise. He was raised bilingually but educated entirely in French. His sons, Pierre-Marc Johnson and Daniel Johnson, Jr. also became premiers of Quebec: Pierre-Marc as leader of the sovereigntist Parti Québécois for a brief period in 1985, and Daniel Jr as leader of the federalist Liberal Party of Quebec for nine months in 1994.
[edit] Member of the Legislature
Johnson won a by-election in 1946 and became the Union Nationale Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the district of Bagot. He was re-elected in 1948, 1952, 1956 and 1960.
He served as parliamentary assistant to Premier Maurice Duplessis in 1955 and Deputy House Speaker from 1955 to 1958. He became the target of cartoonists who portrayed him as Danny Boy.[2]
[edit] Cabinet Member
Johnson was appointed to the Cabinet in 1958 and served as Minister of Hydraulic Resources until the 1960 election which was won by the Liberals. He was the minister who started the Manic-5 hydroelectric project in 1958.
[edit] Party Leader
Johnson was elected party leader against Jean-Jacques Bertrand in 1961. His party lost the 1962 election against Jean Lesage's Liberals, but he was returned to the legislature.
In 1965, his book entitled, Égalité ou indépendance (Equality or independence), made him the first leader of a Quebec political party to recognise the possibility of independence for Canada from the British Crown -- and if the English-speaking Canadian didn't want to be independent, then Quebec could do it alone. His position on the issue was seen to be ambiguous: as he wrote in his book, his position was for "independence if necessary, but not necessarily independence" (a reference to Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King's famous utterance in the WWII conscription debate).
[edit] Premier
Under the same slogan, Égalité ou indépendance, his party won the 1966 election and he became Premier of Quebec. He retained this position until his sudden death of a heart attack in 1968. His term was, among other things, qualified by tensions with the Government of Canada over constitutional matters, because as Premier of Quebec he put forward proposals to reform the Canadian constitution based on the notion of two equal nations as opposed to ten equal provinces.
[edit] Elections as party leader
He lost the 1962 election. He won the 1966 election and died in office in 1968.
[edit] Footnotes
[edit] See also
- Politics of Quebec
- List of Quebec premiers
- List of Quebec general elections
- Timeline of Quebec history
- Nicknames of politicians and personalities in Quebec
| National Assembly of Quebec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Cyrille Dumaine (Liberal) |
MNA for Bagot 1946–1968 |
Succeeded by Jean-Guy Cardinal (Union Nationale) |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Jean Lesage |
Premier of Quebec 1966-1968 |
Succeeded by Jean-Jacques Bertrand |
| Preceded by Antonio Talbot |
Leader of the Opposition in Quebec 1961-1966 |
Succeeded by Jean Lesage |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Antonio Talbot |
Leader of the Union Nationale 1961-1968 |
Succeeded by Jean-Jacques Bertrand |
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