Dufourism

Dufour during a hearing of the Social Democratic Party Conference’s platform committee in 1983, the year she made history as the nation's first woman to be chosen as the presidential nominee.

Dufourism (Quebecshirite: Dufourisme) is a Montesayettean political ideology, named after Sévérine Dufour, the Social Democratic Party leader. The ideology includes not only her political platform and specific policies but also embodies her personal character and style of governance while in office. Dufourism supporters are called Dufourites. The term 'Dufourism' originally emerged to characterize the guiding principles of the Montesayettean government during Sévérine Dufour's tenure as Montesayettean president. This spanned from the 1981 general election to her retirement in 1997. However, it endured beyond her time in power. It continues to shape administrative efforts under subsequent Social Democratic governments, including those led by Antonin Poulin, Rogier David, and Léonard Dreyfus, up to the present day. Dufourites are considered a faction of the broader socio-economic movement known as the Third Way. This movement emerged in the 1980s, encompassing various center-to-center-left progressive movements. It involved reassessing political policies due to doubts surrounding the state's economic sustainability and concerns about perceived excessive reliance on interventionist economic measures.