In September 1984, Progressive Conservative politician Brian Mulroney became Prime Minister of Canada, with the backing of many Parti Québécois (PQ) supporters.
Tensions erupted between the more radical supporters of the PQ–including most of the so-called purs et durs, or hardliners–and the more moderate ones over Premier René Lévesque’s decisions to: In November 1984, six PQ Members of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNAs) resigned from the Cabinet.
On June 3, 1985, the PQ lost a series of four by-elections, managing to finish third in the district of L’Assomption, behind Progressive Conservative Party of Quebec Leader André Asselin, with only 20% of the vote.
In September 1985, a party leadership election chose Pierre-Marc Johnson, another moderate, as his successor.
However, the PQ lost the 1985 election and by 1987, the party’s radical wing pressured Johnson into quitting.