Elections in Canada
Encyclopedia
Canada
holds election
s for several levels of government: nationally (federally)
, provincially and territorially
, and municipally
. Elections are also held for self governing First Nations
and for many other public and private organizations including corporations
and trade unions. Formal elections have occurred in Canada since at least 1792, when both Upper Canada
and Lower Canada
had their first elections.
National voting is available to all Canadian citizens aged 18 or older except the Chief Electoral Officer
and Assistant Chief Electoral Officer. Other elections may have citizenship, residency, and/or ownership requirements (some municipalities allow both residents and non-resident landowners to vote).
has two chambers
: The House of Commons
has 308 members, elected for a maximum five-year term in single-seat constituencies, and the Senate
has 105 members appointed by the governor general
on the advice
of the prime minister
. Senators are given permanent terms (up to age 75) and thus often serve much longer than the prime minister who was primarily responsible for their appointment.
National elections are governed by the Canada Elections Act
. Using the plurality voting system
, Canadians vote for their local Member of Parliament
(MP), who sits in the House of Commons. Most MPs are members of a federal political party
and generally the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons becomes the prime minister; Canadians do not vote directly for the prime minister.
Although several parties are currently represented in parliament, Canada has two dominant political parties
. Historically, these were the Conservatives
and the Liberal Party of Canada
, both of which have governed the country in some form since 1867. As of May 2, 2011, the Liberal Party's place was taken by the New Democratic Party
, making this the first time in Canadian history the Liberals have not been a dominant party in Canada.
The prime minister may ask the governor general to call an election at virtually any time. Although, under Section 4
of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
, each parliament has a maximum term of five years after the return of the writs of the last election, in 2007, parliament passed an act fixing federal election dates every four years. Nevertheless, the law does not curtail the power of the governor general to dissolve parliament at any time, meaning the prime minister may advise such a move whenever he or she feels is prudent. In the provinces and territories
, the maximum life of a legisature is also fixed by the constitution, although some provinces have local laws that require elections to be even earlier.
Traditionally, governments have waited four years between elections, but under Jean Chrétien
's Liberal government in the 1990s, elections were held on average every three and half years. Parties generally only wait the maximum of five years between elections if they expect to lose, and hope (usually in vain) that a postponement will allow more time for things to change in their favour.
If a government loses a non-confidence motion
, traditionally the prime minister will ask the governor general to call an election and the governor general will traditionally follow that advice. However, the viceroy's compliance is not assured; the governor general also has the right to seek out another party leader who might be able to command the confidence of the House and ask him or her to form a government. This happened in 1926 and is referred to as the King-Byng Affair
.
The five-year time limitation is strictly applied to the life of the parliament or assembly in question—this body is not deemed to have been formed until the return of the writs and ceases to exist the moment it is dissolved
. It is therefore possible to run slightly longer than five years between election day
s, as was the case between the 1930
and 1935 elections
.
It is also possible for a general election to be delayed should Canada be embroiled in a war
or insurrection. This provision was enacted to allow Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden
to delay a federal election for about a year during World War I
. Since then, the provision has only been used twice, both times by provincial governments—Ontario delayed an election
for a few weeks in the year following the Armistice in 1918. Saskatchewan was the only jurisdiction to delay a general election by more than a year, due to World War II
, but held an election in 1944
, six years after the previous vote.
Elections are generally held in either the fall or spring. This avoids the problems of a winter campaign, where outdoor events are harder to hold. It also avoids the problems of the summer, when many Canadians are on holiday.
By-election
s can be held between general elections when seats become vacant. The federal government can also hold nation-wide referendum
s on major issues. The last referendum was held in 1992 on proposed constitutional changes in the Charlottetown Accord
. On occasion, one particular issue will dominate an election, and the election will in a sense be a virtual referendum. The most recent instance of this was the 1988 election
, which was considered by most parties to be a referendum on free trade with the United States
.
Every Canadian citizen 18 years of age or older has the right to vote except for the Chief Electoral Officer
and the Deputy Chief Electoral Officer. In the Canada Elections Act, inmates serving a sentence of at least two years are prohibited from voting, but on October 31, 2002, the Supreme Court of Canada
ruled in Sauvé v. Canada that such a law violated the section 3 of the Charter
, and was rendered of no force or effect.
The federal National Register of Electors
is updated to reflect various changes in the Canadian population, including address changes, reaching voting age, naturalization, and death. Every year, about 3,000,000 address changes are processed by Elections Canada from information obtained from the Canada Revenue Agency
, Canada Post
(via the National Change of Address service), provincial and territorial motor vehicle registrars, and provincial electoral agencies with permanent voters lists. Every year, about 400,000 Canadians reach voting age and 200,000 Canadians die, resulting in changes to the National Register of Electors based on information obtained from the Canada Revenue Agency, provincial and territorial motor vehicle registrars, and provincial electoral agencies with permanent voters lists. Additionally, 120,000 individuals a year become naturalised Canadians, and are added to the National Register of Electors by Elections Canada based on information obtained from Citizenship and Immigration Canada
.
Election turnout has been steadily falling for many decades. Although turnout rose by four percent in the 2006 federal election
, the following election saw the return of the declining trend. Currently, about sixty percent of registered voters vote in federal elections, but this amounts to less than 50% of the eligible, adult population.
The most recent election was held on May 2, 2011.
requires that the Parliament sit at least once every twelve months, and thus a campaign would have to conclude in time for returns to be completed and parliament to be called into session within twelve months of the previous sitting. The federal election date must be set on a Monday (or Tuesday if the Monday is a statutory holiday).
The longest election campaign was the 1926 election
following the King-Byng Affair
which lasted 74 days. Prior to the adoption of the minimum of 36 days in law, there were six elections that lasted shorter periods of time. The last of these was the 1904 election
which occurred many decades before the time limit was imposed.
In practice, the Prime Minister will generally keep a campaign as brief as is legal and/or feasible, because spending by parties is strictly limited by the Elections Act, a law which contains no provisions that would allow for increased spending in a lengthy campaign. The 1997
, 2000
and 2004 election
s were all of the minimum 36 days in length which has led to a common misconception that elections must be 36 days long. However, prior to 1997, elections averaged much longer: aside from the 47 day campaign for the 1993 election
, the shortest election period after World War II
was 57 days and many were over 60 days in length.
Much speculation had surrounded how long the campaign for the 39th federal election
would be in 2006, especially as it became certain the election would be called in the weeks preceding Christmas 2005. The government of Joe Clark
, which fell on December 12, 1979, recommended a campaign of 66 days for the resulting election
, and nothing legal barred a similarly lengthened campaign. In the end, the 2006 election was called on November 29, 2005, for January 23, 2006 — making a 55-day long campaign.
elections. A link to complete lists for each province and territory is below. The winning party is indicated in bold and by the coloured bar at the left of the table. The table does not show the current state of the parties within the legislative bodies
; refer to the articles on the individual houses for the current state.
In some cases the provincial parties are not associated with the federal party of the same name. Thus, names of provincial parties are sometimes misleading when associating a provincial party with a national party, although the respective ideologies are usually fairly similar.
None of the current provincial Progressive Conservative Parties are formally linked with the federal Conservatives - the creation of the Conservative Party of Canada resulted in the formal disbanding of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. The new federal party has never asked the provincial PC parties to re-establish any formal links, although informal links do exist in most provinces and the membership lists in many provinces are quite similar. Some provincial parties (such as Alberta) formally broke off links with the federal party prior to the merger. Both the Saskatchewan and Yukon parties are also closely tied to the Conservative party.
In British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec the provincial Liberals are wholly emancipated from the federal Liberals. The other provincial Liberal parties are autonomous entities but retain formal links with the federal party.
On the other hand, all provincial wings of the New Democratic Party are fully integrated with the federal NDP.
As stated above: this table does not show the current state of provincial legislatures, but rather the party standings as a result of the most recent election.
For lists of general elections in each province and territory, see the infobox at the bottom of the article.
1Note: Nunavut
does not have political parties, and political parties in the Northwest Territories
were disbanded in 1905. MLAs in both territories are elected as independents and the legislatures function under a consensus government
model.
2Note: Provincial Liberal parties that are not affiliated with the federal Liberal Party of Canada.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
holds election
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
s for several levels of government: nationally (federally)
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
, provincially and territorially
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
, and municipally
Municipal government in Canada
A municipal government in Canada is a local council authority which provides local services, facilities, safety and infrastructure for communities. Canada has three levels of government; federal, provincial and municipal. According to Section 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867, "In each Province the...
. Elections are also held for self governing First Nations
First Nations Government (Canada)
The fundamental legal unit of government for Canadian First Nations is the band.-Band:A band is typically, but not always, composed of a single community. Many bands, especially in British Columbia, control multiple Indian reserves, that is, multiple parcels of land...
and for many other public and private organizations including corporations
Canadian corporation
A Canadian corporation is a corporation chartered under the laws of Canada. Like its counterpart in many other common law jurisdictions, a Canadian corporation is a legal entity separate and distinct from its shareholders or directors that holds rights and responsibilities similar to those held by...
and trade unions. Formal elections have occurred in Canada since at least 1792, when both Upper Canada
Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada
The Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. It was the elected legislature for the province of Upper Canada and functioned as the province's lower house in the Parliament of Upper Canada...
and Lower Canada
Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada
The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791...
had their first elections.
National voting is available to all Canadian citizens aged 18 or older except the Chief Electoral Officer
Chief Electoral Officer (Canada)
The Chief Electoral Officer is the person responsible for overseeing elections in Canada.The position of Chief Electoral Officer was created in 1920 by the Dominion Elections Act. The Chief Electoral Officer is appointed by a resolution of the Canadian House of Commons...
and Assistant Chief Electoral Officer. Other elections may have citizenship, residency, and/or ownership requirements (some municipalities allow both residents and non-resident landowners to vote).
National
The Parliament of CanadaParliament of Canada
The Parliament of Canada is the federal legislative branch of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in the national capital, Ottawa. Formally, the body consists of the Canadian monarch—represented by her governor general—the Senate, and the House of Commons, each element having its own officers and...
has two chambers
Bicameralism
In the government, bicameralism is the practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers. Thus, a bicameral parliament or bicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of two chambers or houses....
: The House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
has 308 members, elected for a maximum five-year term in single-seat constituencies, and the Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
has 105 members appointed by the governor general
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
on the advice
Advice (constitutional)
Advice, in constitutional law, is formal, usually binding, instruction given by one constitutional officer of state to another. Especially in parliamentary systems of government, Heads of state often act on the basis of advice issued by prime ministers or other government ministers...
of the prime minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
. Senators are given permanent terms (up to age 75) and thus often serve much longer than the prime minister who was primarily responsible for their appointment.
National elections are governed by the Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act is an Act of the Parliament of Canada respecting the election of members of parliament to the Canadian House of Commons, repealing other Acts relating to elections and making consequential amendments to other Acts....
. Using the plurality voting system
Plurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
, Canadians vote for their local Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP), who sits in the House of Commons. Most MPs are members of a federal political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
and generally the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons becomes the prime minister; Canadians do not vote directly for the prime minister.
Although several parties are currently represented in parliament, Canada has two dominant political parties
Two-party system
A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, all or nearly all elected offices are members of one of the two major parties...
. Historically, these were the Conservatives
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
and the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
, both of which have governed the country in some form since 1867. As of May 2, 2011, the Liberal Party's place was taken by the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
, making this the first time in Canadian history the Liberals have not been a dominant party in Canada.
The prime minister may ask the governor general to call an election at virtually any time. Although, under Section 4
Section Four of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Four of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is one of three democratic rights sections in the Charter. Section 4 guarantees that federal and provincial elections must take place from time to time. Subsection 4 provides that the maximum term of the House of Commons, and of all the...
of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
, each parliament has a maximum term of five years after the return of the writs of the last election, in 2007, parliament passed an act fixing federal election dates every four years. Nevertheless, the law does not curtail the power of the governor general to dissolve parliament at any time, meaning the prime minister may advise such a move whenever he or she feels is prudent. In the provinces and territories
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
, the maximum life of a legisature is also fixed by the constitution, although some provinces have local laws that require elections to be even earlier.
Traditionally, governments have waited four years between elections, but under Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
's Liberal government in the 1990s, elections were held on average every three and half years. Parties generally only wait the maximum of five years between elections if they expect to lose, and hope (usually in vain) that a postponement will allow more time for things to change in their favour.
If a government loses a non-confidence motion
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
, traditionally the prime minister will ask the governor general to call an election and the governor general will traditionally follow that advice. However, the viceroy's compliance is not assured; the governor general also has the right to seek out another party leader who might be able to command the confidence of the House and ask him or her to form a government. This happened in 1926 and is referred to as the King-Byng Affair
King-Byng Affair
The King–Byng Affair was a Canadian constitutional crisis that occurred in 1926, when the Governor General of Canada, the Lord Byng of Vimy, refused a request by his prime minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King, to dissolve parliament and call a general election....
.
The five-year time limitation is strictly applied to the life of the parliament or assembly in question—this body is not deemed to have been formed until the return of the writs and ceases to exist the moment it is dissolved
Dissolution of parliament
In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...
. It is therefore possible to run slightly longer than five years between election day
Election Day (politics)
Election Day refers to the day when general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate, while in other countries elections are always held on a weekday...
s, as was the case between the 1930
Canadian federal election, 1930
The Canadian federal election of 1930 was held on July 28, 1930 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 17th Parliament of Canada...
and 1935 elections
Canadian federal election, 1935
The Canadian federal election of 1935 was held on October 14, 1935 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 18th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal Party of William Lyon Mackenzie King won a majority government, defeating Prime Minister R.B. Bennett's Conservative Party.The central...
.
It is also possible for a general election to be delayed should Canada be embroiled in a war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
or insurrection. This provision was enacted to allow Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden
Robert Borden
Sir Robert Laird Borden, PC, GCMG, KC was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the eighth Prime Minister of Canada from October 10, 1911 to July 10, 1920, and was the third Nova Scotian to hold this office...
to delay a federal election for about a year during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Since then, the provision has only been used twice, both times by provincial governments—Ontario delayed an election
Ontario general election, 1919
The Ontario general election, 1919 was the 15th general election held in the Province of Ontario, Canada. It was held on October 20, 1919, to elect the 111 Members of the 15th Legislative Assembly of Ontario ....
for a few weeks in the year following the Armistice in 1918. Saskatchewan was the only jurisdiction to delay a general election by more than a year, due to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but held an election in 1944
Saskatchewan general election, 1944
The Saskatchewan general election of 1944 was the tenth provincial election in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 15, 1944 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
, six years after the previous vote.
Elections are generally held in either the fall or spring. This avoids the problems of a winter campaign, where outdoor events are harder to hold. It also avoids the problems of the summer, when many Canadians are on holiday.
By-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
s can be held between general elections when seats become vacant. The federal government can also hold nation-wide referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
s on major issues. The last referendum was held in 1992 on proposed constitutional changes in the Charlottetown Accord
Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October 26 of that year, and was defeated.-Background:...
. On occasion, one particular issue will dominate an election, and the election will in a sense be a virtual referendum. The most recent instance of this was the 1988 election
Canadian federal election, 1988
The Canadian federal election of 1988 was held November 21, 1988, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 34th Parliament of Canada. It was an election largely fought on a single issue: the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ....
, which was considered by most parties to be a referendum on free trade with the United States
Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement
The Free Trade Agreement was a trade agreement signed by Canada and the United States on October 4, 1988. The agreement, finalized by October 1987, removed several trade restrictions in stages over a ten year period, and resulted in a great increase in cross-border trade...
.
Every Canadian citizen 18 years of age or older has the right to vote except for the Chief Electoral Officer
Chief Electoral Officer (Canada)
The Chief Electoral Officer is the person responsible for overseeing elections in Canada.The position of Chief Electoral Officer was created in 1920 by the Dominion Elections Act. The Chief Electoral Officer is appointed by a resolution of the Canadian House of Commons...
and the Deputy Chief Electoral Officer. In the Canada Elections Act, inmates serving a sentence of at least two years are prohibited from voting, but on October 31, 2002, the Supreme Court of Canada
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
ruled in Sauvé v. Canada that such a law violated the section 3 of the Charter
Section Three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a section of the Charter that constitutionally guarantees all Canadian citizens the democratic right to vote in a general federal or provincial election and the right to be eligible for membership in the House of Commons or of a...
, and was rendered of no force or effect.
The federal National Register of Electors
National Register of Electors
The National Register of Electors is a continuously-updated permanent database of eligible electors for federal elections in Canada maintained by Elections Canada...
is updated to reflect various changes in the Canadian population, including address changes, reaching voting age, naturalization, and death. Every year, about 3,000,000 address changes are processed by Elections Canada from information obtained from the Canada Revenue Agency
Canada Revenue Agency
The Canada Revenue Agency is a federal agency that administers tax laws for the Government of Canada and for most provinces and territories, international trade legislation, and various social and economic benefit and incentive programs delivered through the tax system...
, Canada Post
Canada Post
Canada Post Corporation, known more simply as Canada Post , is the Canadian crown corporation which functions as the country's primary postal operator...
(via the National Change of Address service), provincial and territorial motor vehicle registrars, and provincial electoral agencies with permanent voters lists. Every year, about 400,000 Canadians reach voting age and 200,000 Canadians die, resulting in changes to the National Register of Electors based on information obtained from the Canada Revenue Agency, provincial and territorial motor vehicle registrars, and provincial electoral agencies with permanent voters lists. Additionally, 120,000 individuals a year become naturalised Canadians, and are added to the National Register of Electors by Elections Canada based on information obtained from Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Citizenship and Immigration Canada is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for issues dealing with immigration and citizenship...
.
Election turnout has been steadily falling for many decades. Although turnout rose by four percent in the 2006 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
, the following election saw the return of the declining trend. Currently, about sixty percent of registered voters vote in federal elections, but this amounts to less than 50% of the eligible, adult population.
The most recent election was held on May 2, 2011.
Length of election campaigns
The length of election campaigns can vary, but under the Elections Act, the minimum length of a campaign is 36 days. There is no explicit maximum length for a campaign, although section 5 of the CharterSection Five of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Five of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a part of the Constitution of Canada, and the last of three democratic rights in the Charter. Its role is to establish a rule regarding how frequently the Parliament of Canada and the legislatures of the provinces and territories of...
requires that the Parliament sit at least once every twelve months, and thus a campaign would have to conclude in time for returns to be completed and parliament to be called into session within twelve months of the previous sitting. The federal election date must be set on a Monday (or Tuesday if the Monday is a statutory holiday).
The longest election campaign was the 1926 election
Canadian federal election, 1926
The Canadian federal election of 1926 was held on September 14 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 16th Parliament of Canada. The election was called following an event known as the King-Byng Affair...
following the King-Byng Affair
King-Byng Affair
The King–Byng Affair was a Canadian constitutional crisis that occurred in 1926, when the Governor General of Canada, the Lord Byng of Vimy, refused a request by his prime minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King, to dissolve parliament and call a general election....
which lasted 74 days. Prior to the adoption of the minimum of 36 days in law, there were six elections that lasted shorter periods of time. The last of these was the 1904 election
Canadian federal election, 1904
The Canadian federal election of 1904 was held on November 3 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Canada...
which occurred many decades before the time limit was imposed.
In practice, the Prime Minister will generally keep a campaign as brief as is legal and/or feasible, because spending by parties is strictly limited by the Elections Act, a law which contains no provisions that would allow for increased spending in a lengthy campaign. The 1997
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
, 2000
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
and 2004 election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
s were all of the minimum 36 days in length which has led to a common misconception that elections must be 36 days long. However, prior to 1997, elections averaged much longer: aside from the 47 day campaign for the 1993 election
Canadian federal election, 1993
The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...
, the shortest election period after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
was 57 days and many were over 60 days in length.
Much speculation had surrounded how long the campaign for the 39th federal election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
would be in 2006, especially as it became certain the election would be called in the weeks preceding Christmas 2005. The government of Joe Clark
Joe Clark
Charles Joseph "Joe" Clark, is a Canadian statesman, businessman, and university professor, and former journalist and politician...
, which fell on December 12, 1979, recommended a campaign of 66 days for the resulting election
Canadian federal election, 1980
The Canadian federal election of 1980 was held on February 18, 1980 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 32nd Parliament of Canada...
, and nothing legal barred a similarly lengthened campaign. In the end, the 2006 election was called on November 29, 2005, for January 23, 2006 — making a 55-day long campaign.
Provincial and territorial
The following table summarizes the results of the most recent provincial and territorialProvinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
elections. A link to complete lists for each province and territory is below. The winning party is indicated in bold and by the coloured bar at the left of the table. The table does not show the current state of the parties within the legislative bodies
Legislative Assemblies of Canada's provinces and territories
This is a list of the Legislative Assemblies of Canada's provinces and territories. *Governing parties are shown by shading.*1 "Provincial parties" are parties that use the province's name followed by "Party" or something similar...
; refer to the articles on the individual houses for the current state.
In some cases the provincial parties are not associated with the federal party of the same name. Thus, names of provincial parties are sometimes misleading when associating a provincial party with a national party, although the respective ideologies are usually fairly similar.
None of the current provincial Progressive Conservative Parties are formally linked with the federal Conservatives - the creation of the Conservative Party of Canada resulted in the formal disbanding of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. The new federal party has never asked the provincial PC parties to re-establish any formal links, although informal links do exist in most provinces and the membership lists in many provinces are quite similar. Some provincial parties (such as Alberta) formally broke off links with the federal party prior to the merger. Both the Saskatchewan and Yukon parties are also closely tied to the Conservative party.
In British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec the provincial Liberals are wholly emancipated from the federal Liberals. The other provincial Liberal parties are autonomous entities but retain formal links with the federal party.
On the other hand, all provincial wings of the New Democratic Party are fully integrated with the federal NDP.
As stated above: this table does not show the current state of provincial legislatures, but rather the party standings as a result of the most recent election.
| Province or territory | Date of most recent election |
Total seats | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Progressive Conservative Conservative parties in Canada This is a list of conservative parties in Canada. There are a number of conservative parties in Canada, a country that has traditionally been dominated by two political parties, one liberal and one conservative.-Progressive Conservatives:... |
Liberal Liberalism in Canada Liberalism has been a strong force in Canadian politics since the late 18th Century. While Canada has the same features of other liberal democracies in the Western democratic political tradition, it is, in some respects, an exemplar of liberalism. This article gives an overview of liberalism in... |
New Democrat New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in... |
Other | ||||
| Saskatchewan Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan The 25th Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan was in power from 2003 until November 20, 2007. It was controlled by the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party under premier Lorne Calvert.-Members:-By-elections:... |
November 7, 2011 Saskatchewan general election, 2011 The 27th Saskatchewan general election was held on November 7, 2011, to elect 58 members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan . The election was called on October 10 by the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, on the advice of Premier Brad Wall... |
9 | 49 (Saskatchewan Party Saskatchewan Party The Saskatchewan Party is a conservative liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The party was established in 1997 by a coalition of former provincial Progressive Conservative and Liberal party members and supporters who sought to remove the Saskatchewan New Democratic... ) |
58 | |||
| Yukon Yukon Legislative Assembly -History:From 1900 to 1978, the elected legislative body in the Yukon was the Yukon Territorial Council, a ten-member body which did not act as the primary government, but was a non-partisan advisory body to the Commissioner of the Yukon... |
October 11, 2011 | 2 | 6 | 11 (Yukon Party Yukon Party The Yukon Party , is a conservative political party in the Yukon Territory of Canada. It was previously known as the Yukon Progressive Conservative Party.-Declining fortunes:... ) |
19 | ||
| Newfoundland & Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is one of two components of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the other being the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland and Labrador General Assembly meets in the Confederation Building at St... |
October 11, 2011 Newfoundland and Labrador general election, 2011 The 48th Newfoundland and Labrador general election occurred on October 11, 2011, to elect members of the 47th General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the 19th election for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada... |
37 | 6 | 5 | 48 | ||
| Ontario Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada... |
October 6, 2011 Ontario general election, 2011 The 40th Ontario general election was held on October 6, 2011 to elect members of the 40th Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The Ontario Liberal Party will form a minority government, with the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario serving as the Official Opposition and the Ontario New... |
37 | 532 | 17 | 107 | ||
| Manitoba Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba and the lieutenant governor form the Legislature of Manitoba, the legislature of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly in provincial general elections, all in single-member constituencies with first-past-the-post... |
October 4, 2011 Manitoba general election, 2011 The 40th general election of Manitoba was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. It took place on October 4, 2011, due to the new fixed-date election laws... |
19 | 1 | 37 | 57 | ||
| Northwest Territories | October 3, 2011 Northwest Territories general election, 2011 The 2011 Northwest Territories general election, the 22nd in its history, took place on October 3, 2011. Nineteen members were returned to the 17th Legislative Assembly from single member districts conducted under first-past-the-post voting system.... |
191 | 19 | ||||
| Prince Edward Island Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island, along with the Lieutenant-Governor, forms the parliament of the province. The General Assembly meets at Province House, which is located at the intersection of Richmond and Great George Streets in Charlottetown.... |
October 3, 2011 | 5 | 22 | 27 | |||
| New Brunswick Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick The Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick is located in Fredericton. It was established de jure when the colony was created in 1784, but only came in to session in 1786 following the first elections in late 1785. Until 1891, it was the lower house in a bicameral legislature when its upper house... |
September 27, 2010 | 42 | 13 | 55 | |||
| Nova Scotia Nova Scotia House of Assembly The Nova Scotia Legislature, consisting of Her Majesty The Queen represented by the Lieutenant Governor and the House of Assembly, is the legislative branch of the provincial government of Nova Scotia, Canada... |
June 9, 2009 | 10 | 11 | 31 | 52 | ||
| British Columbia Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament .... |
May 12, 2009 British Columbia general election, 2009 The 39th British Columbia general election was held on May 12, 2009 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The BC Liberal Party formed the government of the province prior to this general election under the leadership of Premier Gordon Campbell... |
492 | 35 | 1 (Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... ) |
85 | ||
| Quebec National Assembly of Quebec The National Assembly of Quebec is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec. The Lieutenant Governor and the National Assembly compose the Parliament of Quebec, which operates in a fashion similar to those of other British-style parliamentary systems.The National Assembly was formerly the... |
December 8, 2008 | 662 | 51 (Parti Québécois Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois is a centre-left political party that advocates national sovereignty for the province of Quebec and secession from Canada. The Party traditionally has support from the labour movement. Unlike many other social-democratic parties, its ties with the labour movement are informal... ) 7 (Action démocratique du Québec Action démocratique du Québec The Action démocratique du Québec, commonly referred to as the ADQ is a centre-right political party in Quebec, Canada. On the sovereignty question, it defines itself as autonomist, and has support from both soft nationalists and federalists.... ) 1 (Québec Solidaire Québec Solidaire Québec solidaire is a democratic socialist and sovereigntist political party in Quebec, Canada, that was created on 4 February 2006 in Montreal. It was formed by the merger of the left-wing party Union des forces progressistes and the alter-globalization political movement Option Citoyenne, led... ) |
125 | |||
| Nunavut Legislative Assembly of Nunavut The Legislative Assembly of Nunavut, Canada, is located in Iqaluit, and is the territory's parliament.The Legislative Assembly of Nunavut was opened by Queen Elizabeth II, as Queen of Canada, on 7 October 2002, during her Golden Jubilee tour of Canada... |
October 27, 2008 Nunavut general election, 2008 The Third Nunavut General Election took place on October 27, 2008 to return members to the 3rd Legislative Assembly of Nunavut. The election was contested across 15 of Nunavut's 19 electoral districts under the first past the post system of voting... |
191 | 19 | ||||
| Alberta Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton... |
March 3, 2008 | 72 | 92 | 2 | 83 | ||
For lists of general elections in each province and territory, see the infobox at the bottom of the article.
1Note: Nunavut
Nunavut
Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...
does not have political parties, and political parties in the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
were disbanded in 1905. MLAs in both territories are elected as independents and the legislatures function under a consensus government
Consensus government
Consensus government is a form of consensus democracy government in Canada in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, as well as Nunatsiavut, an autonomous area in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador....
model.
2Note: Provincial Liberal parties that are not affiliated with the federal Liberal Party of Canada.
See also
- List of Canadian federal general elections
- List of political parties in Canada
- Canadian electoral calendarCanadian electoral calendarThis is list of elections in Canada in 2006. Included are provincial, municipal and federal elections, by-elections on any level, referendums and party leadership races at any level.-January:*9: Municipal by-election in Orléans Ward, Ottawa...
- List of Canadian federal electoral districts
- Past Canadian electoral districts
- Referendums in CanadaReferendums in CanadaNational referendums are seldom used in Canada. The first two referendums saw voters in Québec and the rest of Canada take dramatically opposing stands, the third saw most of the voters take a stand dramatically opposed to that of the politicians in power....
- List of elections in the Province of Canada (pre-Confederation)
- List of federal by-elections in Canada
- Electronic voting in CanadaElectronic voting in CanadaIt is a common misconception that there is no electronic voting in Canada. While the federal elections still use paper ballots, electronic voting technology has been used since at least the 1990s at the municipal level in some cities, and there are increasing efforts in a few areas to introduce it...
- Electoral calendar
- Electoral system
- Canadian electoral systemCanadian electoral systemThe Canadian electoral system is based on a parliamentary system of government, modelled on that of the United Kingdom.The Canadian federal Parliament consists of:*The sovereign...
- Federal political financing in CanadaFederal political financing in CanadaThe fair and transparent financing of political parties, candidates, and election campaigns is a key determinant in the health and proper functioning of a democracy...
- Timeline of Canadian electionsTimeline of Canadian electionsThis article provides a timeline of elections in Canada, including all the provincial, territorial and federal elections. The information starts from when each province was formed or entered the Confederation, and continues through to the present day. The background colour indicates which party won...
- Voter turnout in CanadaVoter turnout in CanadaVoter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election. The following presents voter turnout figures for Canada's general elections as compiled by Elections Canada....