3rd Quebec Legislature
The Third Legislature of Quebec was the provincial legislature of Quebec, Canada from 1875 to 1878, following the general election of 1875.
Legislature of Quebec Législature du Québec | |
|---|---|
| Third Legislature, 1875 - 1878 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Houses | Legislative Council Legislative Assembly |
Term limits | Four years, subject to earlier dissolution. |
| History | |
| Founded | July 1, 1867 |
| Preceded by | Second Legislature of Quebec, 1871-1875 |
| Succeeded by | Fourth Legislature of Quebec, 1878-1881 |
| Leadership | |
Monarch | Victoria |
Lieutenant Governor | René-Édouard Caron (1873-1876) Luc Letellier de St-Just (1876-1879) |
Premier | Charles Boucher de Boucherville (1874-1878) (Conservative) Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière (Liberal) (1878-1879) |
Speaker of the Legislative Council | Félix-Hyacinthe Lemaire (1875-1876) (Conservative) John Jones Ross (1876-1878) (Conservative) Henry Starnes (1878) (Liberal) |
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly | Pierre-Étienne Fortin (1875-1876) Conservative Louis Beaubien (1876-1878) Conservative |
Leader of the Opposition | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | Legislative Council: 24 Legislative Assembly: 65 |
Legislative Council political groups | Conservatives 21 Liberals 3 |
Legislative Assembly political groups | Conservatives 44 Liberals 19 Independent Conservatives 2 |
| Elections | |
Legislative Council voting system | Life appointments |
Legislative Assembly voting system | Single member constituencies First-past-the-post voting Secret ballot Adult male franchise with property qualification |
| Constitution | |
| British North America Act, 1867 | |
In the 1875 election, Premier Charles Boucher de Boucherville and the Conservative Party of Quebec won a majority in the Legislative Assembly and continued in office with a majority government. However, in 1878, de Boucherville was dismissed from office by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Luc Letellier de Saint-Just, who appointed Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière, the leader of the Quebec Liberal Party as premier.
Joly de Lotbinière formed a minority government. It was the first time the Liberals were in office since Quebec had been created in 1867, and the first minority government in Quebec's history. Lotbinière immediately called a general election due to the minority status of his government.
The Legislature held three annual sessions, with the first session called on November 4, 1875. The Legislature was dissolved on March 22, 1878, leading to the 1878 general election on May 1, 1878.