Socreds out of the party into the new Ralliement créditiste (Social Credit Rally) but lost more than half of the party's Quebec seats. Robert N. Thompson continued to lead the Social Credit Party in English-speaking Canada, and actually managed to gain one seat outside Quebec although it was still fewer than the French-Canadian breakaway party. However, even the combined seat totals of the two factions would not have been enough to prevent the NDP from replacing Social Credit as the third largest party. The election would be the last time that the Social Credit Party elected federal candidates outside Quebec. This was the first election for the Rhinoceros Party of Canada, a satirical party led by Cornelius the First. The party fielded only one candidate. Cornelius, a resident of the Granby zoo, did not seek election because Canadian election law does not permit rhinoceroses (or other zoo animals) to be nominated. In order to govern, the minority Liberals relied on the New Democratic Party and occasionally other smaller opposition parties in order to remain in power. Pearson announced his intention to resign as Liberal leader in December 1967 and was replaced the following April by Pierre Trudeau. Notably, this election marked the last time that a single conservative party did not win an absolute majority of the vote in Alberta (although the totals of the Progressive Conservatives and Social Credit combined did add up to over two thirds of the vote in that province). Party platforms Liberal Party: $500 million for medical and dental research over 15 years; $40 million university scholarship program over 2 years; improve crop insurance for farmers; create a national dairy marketing board; allow full-time farm workers to participate in Unemployment Insurance; increase old age security payments; $100 million programs to build roads in northern Canada; $25 million to support the coal industry in Nova Scotia. Progressive Conservative Party: increase grants to universities; special tax deduction for gifts to universities; grants to support medical and dental research; establish a federal government grain agency; provide grants to farmers; increase old age security payments from $75 per month to $100 per month for senior citizens over the age of 70; create a national water conservation program, and divert water from northern Canada to southern regions; develop hydro-electric potential of Nelson River, Peace River and the Bay of Fundy; reduce corporate and personal income taxes; provide tax deductions for