Electoral Reform in Canada

Electoral reform is the process of reviewing and reconfiguring the structure of electoral politics, i.e., the way in which voters elect their representatives. In Canada, electoral reform has historically occurred through reconfigurations of electoral ridings, or the extension of the right to vote to previously disenfranchised groups of people. Attempts have been made to change electoral systems on a number of occasions, at both the provincial and federal level. The matter was of specific interest throughout 2016 due to the Liberal Party’s pledge during the 2015 federal election campaign to enact reform by 2019. However, the Trudeau government abandoned this in February 2017, citing a lack of consensus on the issue.

Lobbying in Canada

Lobbying is the process through which individuals and groups articulate their interests to federal, provincial or municipal governments in order to influence public policy or government decision-making. Lobbyists may be paid third parties who communicate on behalf of their clients, or may be employees of a corporation or organization seeking to influence the government. Because of the possibility for conflict of interest, lobbying is the subject of much public scrutiny. Nevertheless, it serves the important purpose of providing individual and collective interests with access to government. At the federal level, lobbying activities are governed by the Lobbying Act, while provinces and municipalities have their own laws and by-laws.

Nova Scotia: The Cradle of Canadian Parliamentary Democracy

On 2 October 1758, Nova Scotia's first Legislative Assembly met in Halifax, and Canadian parliamentary government was born.

Remember the Caroline: The Temptations of Unilateralism

The Early American Republic and the 1837–38 Canadian Rebellions

In December 1837 and January 1838, in the wake of heavy defeats at the hands of British and Loyalist forces, Upper and Lower Canadian rebels fled to the United States where they sought financial and military assistance. Though the American public was aware that there had been an armed conflict in the Canadas, and many were even initially very supportive, the presence of Canadian rebels on American soil along with growing tensions with Great Britain amid the Caroline Affair forced many to question American involvement. The rebels appeared at a very divisive moment in American history, forcing many to consider the social, political, diplomatic or economic ramifications of the rebellions on the Early American Republic. Though the rebels received support in the borderland, most believed that the United States should remain neutral.

Canadian Alliance

The Canadian Alliance party was created from the remains of the former Reform Party of Canada at a convention in Ottawa in January of 2000 in an attempt to merge conservative opposition to the Liberal Party.

Right to Vote in Canada

Franchise denotes the right to vote in public elections for members of Parliament, provincial legislatures and municipal councils.

Long Point

Long Point is a 40-km long sand spit on the north shore of Lake Erie. The longest spit in Canada, Long Point is the best surviving example of a wetlands and dune ecosystem in the Great Lakes basin.

Populism

Populism has an important past and contemporary presence in Canadian political culture and public life.

Socialism

Socialism is a political doctrine that criticizes the existence of social, economic and political inequality in society. Seeking to lessen class inequality, socialists call for a redistribution of power from the affluent owners to the working class.

Bill 178

In December 1988 the Liberal government of Québec introduced Bill 178, an Act to amend Bill 101, Charte de la langue française.

Political Party Financing in Canada

Election laws regulate most aspects of federal political party financing, both during and outside of election periods.

Corruption

Political corruption may be defined as behaviour by public officials, elected or appointed, which violates social or legal norms regarding what is or is not legitimate private gain at public expense.

Party System

Political parties are organizations that seek to control government and participate in public affairs by nominating candidates for elections. Since there are typically multiple groups that wish to do this, political parties are best thought of as part of a party system, which is the way political parties conduct themselves in order to structure political competition.

Giving Credit Where Credit's Due: Rewriting the Patriation Story

For the last 30 years, politicians and the media have frequently recounted the same story about the patriation of Canada’'s constitution and the adoption of the Charter of Rights.

Francophone-Anglophone Relations

"Two nations warring in the bosom of a single state" was Lord Durham's assessment of the relationship between Lower Canada's French Canadian and British Canadian communities in the 1830s.

Front de libération du Québec

The FLQ is best known for the 1970 October Crisis. The Crisis was the first occasion in the history of Canada that its citizens were deprived of their rights and freedoms during peace time.

De Gaulle and "Vive le Québec libre"

On 24 July 1967, during a state visit to Expo '67, General Charles de Gaulle, president of France and a hero of the 20th century, proclaimed from the balcony of Montréal's City Hall a sentence that would change the history of Canada: “Vive le Québec libre.”

Francophone Nationalism in Québec

​Francophone nationalism in Québec or Québec nationalism is the result of the evolution of French-Canadian nationalism.

Parti rouge

Successor of the Parti patriote, the Parti rouge was a radical liberal political party from Canada East (Québec).

Quebec Liberal Party

​The Liberal Party is both the oldest political party in Québec and the party that has been in power most often in the province’s history.

Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ)

​Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) is a Québec political party founded in 2011 by Charles Sirois and François Legault, former Parti Québécois (PQ) member of the National Assembly (MNA) and cabinet minister. A centre-right political party, the CAQ merged with the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) in 2012.

Enfranchisement

Enfranchisement was the most common of the legal processes by which Indigenous peoples lost their Indian Status under the Indian Act.

National Energy Program

The 1980 National Energy Program (NEP) was an attempt by the federal government to gain greater control over the Canadian petroleum industry, secure Canadian oil supplies, and redistribute Alberta's oil wealth to the rest of the country.

La Capricieuse

The first French naval vessel to visit Canada after the Conquest, La Capricieuse received a tumultuous welcome at Québec on 13 July 1855.