In an unusual move, the election was called just two years after the previous 1960 general election. Lesage sought a mandate for the nationalization of electricity, declaring this single issue important enough to stake his political career on it.
A few days before the election, the Union Nationale's chief organizer André Lagarde was arrested for fraud. The Liberals claimed this was proof of lingering corruption dating from the Duplessis era, but the UN cried foul and were vindicated after the election. However, the incident may well have contributed to the UN's defeat.
The Liberals won an increased number of seats and a higher percentage of the popular vote, and the nationalization program was carried out. Future Parti Québécois founder René Lévesque served as a cabinet minister in the Lesage government and spearheaded the nationalization of power utilities to greatly expand Hydro-Québec.
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