Social Credit Party of Canada

The Social Credit Party of Canada (French Parti Crédit social du Canada ) was a political party in Canada that existed from 1935 to 1993. The Socreds, as they called themselves, were aligned conservative- populist and campaigned for a free economic management system in accordance with the theories of Social Credit. Besides this represented at the federal level party existed autonomous branches in different provinces.

In Western Canada emerged as a protest movement, the party had the reputation of being anti-Semitic in the first years of its existence. Over time, the influence of the party took in western Canada from continuously while it rose in the province of Quebec the dominant force in rural areas. 1962 years it came to the break between the English and the French-speaking part of the party, whereupon the Socred MPs from Quebec formed their own party, the Ralliement créditiste. Although 1971 was the reunion, but it also began the slow decline of the party, which was finally no longer represented in parliament from 1980.

History

Protest movement in the West (1935-1961)

The Social Credit movement in Canada has its origins in the Social Credit Party of Alberta, in 1935 won the provincial election in Alberta. In the same year the Western Social Credit League was formed to establish the protest movement at the federal level. They attracted many affected by the impact of the global economic crisis voters who no longer felt represented by the Progressive Party and the United Farmers. In the general election, 1935, the antretenden only in Western Canada Socreds won 17 seats, 15 of them in Alberta, where they could unite nearly half of all votes.

1939 joined the Socreds along with the movement of William Duncan Herridge New Democracy and took under that name in part to the general election in 1940. At its first convention in 1944, delegates voted to abandon the name New Democracy and founded officially the Social Credit Party of Canada. The various offshoots in the provinces were loosely associated with the federal party. It loomed more and more that the theories of Social Credit were difficult to enforce, which is why the party increasingly turned away and socially conservative values represented. This led in 1947 to temporarily break with the radical Union of electeurs ( " Association of voters" ) in the province of Quebec.

In the first years of its existence, Socreds earned the reputation of being anti-Semites. The party chairman John Horne Blackmore and Solon Earl Low were accused of " anti-Semites regularly support public". 1945 asserted low, a conspiracy of Jewish bankers was the cause of the problems in the world. 1947 read the member of Parliament Norman Jacques during the parliamentary debates even from the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. 1957 Low swore after a visit to Israel from anti-Semitism and held several times thereafter speeches in which he advocated the Jewish state.

Secession in Quebec and reunion (1962-1971)

At the beginning of the 1960s there were serious tensions between the English and the French-speaking part of the party. When choosing a new chairman in July 1961, Robert N. Thompson sat Réal Caouette against ( the Benito Mussolini was one of his models ) by. The vote totals were never published, which led to accusations that the elections had been falsified to Thompson's favor. Before the election, had Ernest Manning, Premier of Alberta, have announced that the West would never accept a francophone Catholics as chairman.

The general election in 1962 reinforced the gap between the language groups even more: 26 MPs were from Quebec, only four ( including Thompson ) from the English-speaking parts of Canada. After the early general election in 1963 was the ratio 20:4. Despite its clear inferiority Thompson refused to step down as chairman. September 1, 1963, it finally came to the final break, Québec than 13 deputies formed their own party, the Ralliement créditiste. Five deputies went on as independents, two joined the Progressive Conservative Party in.

In the following years, the Federal Party of Socreds in the West declined from almost to insignificance; especially after the elections of 1965, when for the last time ever to win seats in this region. This development was in stark contrast to the situation in Alberta and British Columbia, where the provincial branch of the Socreds continue unchallenged presented the government. Réal Caouette and Ralliement créditiste were now the only significant representative of the Social Credit movement at the federal level, which facilitated a rapprochement. WAC Bennett, Premier of British Columbia and Chair of the British Columbia Social Credit Party, exerted pressure on the federal party by temporarily stopped the financial support. Through him the division was finally overcome. In October 1971 Caouette was elected as the new Chairman of the Socreds.

Decline (1972-1980)

At the general election in 1972, the Socreds won 15 seats while, but not in Quebec. In Western Canada, where she had her roots, the party did not matter. In 1973, came within Ralliement créditiste du Québec, the provincial branch of the Socreds in Quebec, also at a fraction. Réal Caouette occurred after an accident involving a snowmobile little more public appearance.

Despite these adverse conditions, the Socreds could at the general election in 1974 eleven seats to win, again, all in Québec. Yet to become recognized as a group, and thus have the right to serve on committees, was missing a seat, with the approval of the liberal government granted the Speaker of the House this privilege nonetheless. After Caouette's resignation in 1976 ( and whose death shortly thereafter ) accelerated the decline. The newly elected party chairman André- Gilles Fortin came after just eight months in office, in a car accident.

After several changes at the top - among other things led Réal Caouette's son Gilles briefly at the party - Fabien Roy was determined before the general election in 1979 as the new Chairman. Roy worked closely with the separatist Parti Québécois together who asked the provincial government, but encountered so many traditional Socred voters on the head. The number of lower house deputies fell to six - exactly the number needed by the new Progressive Conservative Prime Minister Joe Clark, to support his minority government. However, Clark refused to cooperate and lost a no-confidence vote, as contained Socreds voice. This step proved to be fatal: In the early general election, 1980, the Socreds lost two thirds of its voters and could not win a single seat more.

Splinter party (1981-1993)

After Roy's resignation, the party collapsed and sank in Quebec down to utter insignificance. Although she took part in elections to continue, but could not unite a candidate more than a few hundred votes.

The party failed to nominate for the general election in 1993 at least fifty candidates for the choice Authority Elections Canada the Socreds withdrew the registration and had to play the remaining candidates as independents. The evangelist Ken Campbell, the last chairman, took over the party name as a trademark and published until his death in 2006 political writings under that name.

Election results

Below the results of the elections are noted for the lower house. Not included are the results of the Union of electeurs and Ralliement are créditiste.

Party chairman

John Horne Blackmore (1935-1944)
Solon Earl Low (1944-1961)
Robert N. Thompson (1961-1967)
Alexander Bell Patterson (1967-1968, on an interim basis )
Réal Caouette (1971-1976)
André- Gilles Fortin (1976-1977)
Gilles Caouette (1977-1978, on an interim basis )
Charles- Arthur Gauthier (1978, on an interim basis )
Lorne Reznowski (1978-1979)
Charles- Arthur Gauthier (1979, on an interim basis )
Fabien Roy (1979-1980)
Martin Hattersley (1981-1983)
Ken Sweigard (1983-1986, on an interim basis )
Harvey Lainson (1986-1990)
Ken Campbell (1990-1993)

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