Daniel Johnson, Sr.'s sudden death in 1968 left the party divided between its nationalist wing and members who clearly positioned themselves as federalists. The latter prevailed when Jean-Jacques Bertrand won the party leadership over Jean-Guy Cardinal, but the controversy over a language legislation known as Bill 63 prompted a number of nationalist supporters, and legislators such as Antonio Flamand and Jérôme Proulx to join the Parti Québécois. In addition, the Union Nationale lost a portion of its conservative base, including MNA Gaston Tremblay, to the Ralliement créditiste. Bertrand was unable to inspire voters and the party seemed to have lost touch with Quebec society. In the 1970 election, the Union Nationale was resoundingly defeated, winning only 17 seats. While it finished third in the popular vote behind the PQ, it still managed to become the Official Opposition. Gabriel Loubier took over as leader and the party became known as Unité Québec from October 25, 1971 to January 14, 1973. The name change was not enough to halt the party's decline, and at the 1973 election, it was shut out of the legislature for the first time. In 1974, former UN Cabinet Member and interim leader Maurice Bellemare won a by-election, and the party again was represented in the National Assembly. On May 31, 1975, the party merged with the tiny Parti présidentiel, a group of Créditiste dissidents led by Yvon Brochu, and kept the Union Nationale name. In May 1976, business owner Rodrigue Biron, a former card-carrying Liberal supporter who had no experience in provincial politics, was chosen as party leader. Bellemare tried to flush out potential candidates for the leadership of the UN (such as former Liberal cabinet minister Jérôme Choquette) by calling a leadership convention for May 1976, but was unsuccessful. His impulsive policy statements and poor relations with the old guard of the party led to resignations of party officials, including Jacques Tétreault, who had been his most serious opponent for the party leadership. In September 1976, Biron abandoned a plan to unite his party with Choquette's Parti National Populaire, despite prior efforts made by the two groups. The Union Nationale made a modest recovery in the 1976 election, winning 11 seats and 18.2% of the popular vote. While it came up just short of official party status in the legislature, the party appeared to be back from the brink. However, this did not last. From 1978