After the CCF became the New Democratic Party (NDP) in 1961, the NPDQ was created in 1963 following the concerted efforts of the Quebec Federation of Labour (Fédération des travailleurs du Québec) (FTQ) and of the Quebec section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), which had been known as the Parti social démocratique du Québec (PSD) since 1955.
Until the end of the 1960s, in conformity with the division of roles that had been decided in 1963, the NPDQ was active exclusively on the federal political level in Quebec.
This left the provincial political level to the pro-independence Parti socialiste du Québec, PSQ) led by former PSD leader Michel Chartrand.
In 1989, the NPDQ voted to disaffiliate from the federal NDP as a result of policy differences, such as the provincial party's opposition to the Meech Lake Accord; its support for Quebec's language policy; differences with the federal party over the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement; and its more favourable position towards Quebec nationalism.
The federal NDP announced that they were seeking legal means to force the NPDQ to stop calling using the name "New Democratic".
As a consequence, the PDS withdrew its official party registration with the chief electoral officer and participated under the UFP banner in the Quebec general election of 2003.
In 2014, supporters of the federal NDP founded a new New Democratic Party of Quebec (NPDQ) which stood 59 candidates in the 2018 provincial election receiving 0.57% of the vote.