Political Parties

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Political Parties
The House of Commons
The Green Party
Elizabeth May
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Key Terms to Know

• Platform A formal, written statement outlining
  the policies of a political party
• Political Parties Organized groups of people
  with common values or goals who compete to get
  candidates elected and to form the government.
• Political Spectrum A line showing the range of
  political beliefs from liberalism (left) to
  conservatism (right)
• Interest Groups Organizations of people who
  share social, political and other goals and act
  together to influence governments. They may be
  local, national or international in scope.
• Referendum A direct yes or no vote of the
  electorate on a specific issue, policy or law.

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The Political Spectrum

• Your views on economic, social, and religious
  issues has a direct impact upon the Political
  Party that you wish to support. For instance,
• Should the government censor the arts?
• Should Marijuana be de-criminalized?
• Should all Canadians receive equal access to
  health care?
• Should taxes be raised to pay for much needed
  social programs?
• Should same sex marriages be recognized?

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The Political Spectrum
Supporter of the Gun Lobby
Anti-Globalization Rally
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The Political Spectrum Right Wing, Left Wing and
Moderates

• When people describe their political views, they
  often refer to themselves as Right wing
  (Conservative), left wing (Liberal), or
  moderate (in the middle).
• How you place yourself on the Political Spectrum
  is based on your responses to Political issues.
• How do you know what you are?

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Liberals

• Liberals tend to hold the following Political
  Views
• Government should be heavily involved in the
  lives of citizens.
• Citizens should have equal opportunities through
  law (e.g. affirmative action programs)
• Strong support of social programs such as
  welfare, medicare and pensions
• Higher taxes to pay for social programs
• A small military

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Conservatives

• Conservatives tend to hold the following views
• There should be minimal government intervention
  in the economy
• Citizens should take greater responsibility for
  themselves
• They believe in traditional values (e.g.
  religious views on social issues)
• Lower taxes to increase global competitiveness
• There should be a strong military

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Political Spectrum to Political Parties

• Where you position yourself on the political
  spectrum has a direct impact on your choice of
  political party.
• In Canada, right wingers tend to vote for the
  Conservative Party, left wingers the NDP and
  moderates the Liberal Party.
• Question Would liberals vote for the Liberal
  Party?

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Political Party Platforms

• Each political party has their own set of
  policies on a number of different issues
• Health Care
• Taxes/Government Spending
• Social Welfare Programs
• Social Issues (e.g.Same Sex Marriage)
• Job Creation/ Trade Initiatives (e.g.
  Globalization, NAFTA)
• The Military (e.g. the War in Afghanistan)

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Political Party Platforms

• When a political party presents their ideas
  before the electorate on a series of issues, they
  are said to be presenting their Political
  Platform.
• How do you win an election?
• By presenting a political platform that
  represents the views of the majority of the
  electorate (Canadians, Ontarians,
  Georgetownians?, etc)

Who would you vote for?
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Political Party Platforms
When you write the Political Platform You want to
make sure that the policies Enclosed reflect the
prevailing interests Of the majority of
Canadians. A strong platform can win an election!
The Conservative Partys Platform
What else do you need for electoral success?
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Who would you vote for? What is Charisma?

• For many, the main ingredient for electoral
  success is charisma the ability to inspire the
  people to join you in a march towards greater
  prosperity.
• Who has Charisma?

Barack Obama
Hilary Clinton
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Charisma
Stephane Dion
How do you define Charisma? Who has it? Who
doesnt? Do you need it to be successful In
Politics?
Pierre Elliot Trudeau
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How do Political Parties decide which policies to
adopt?

• There are many different issues that Political
  Parties need to deal with
• Health Care
• The Environment
• Taxes/Government Spending
• Social Welfare Programs
• Social Issues (e.g.Same Sex Marriage)
• Job Creation/ Trade Initiatives (e.g.
  Globalization)
• The Military (e.g. the War in Afghanistan).
• What should they do?

Trade issues are a hot topic!
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Political Parties have to Address many issues in
their Party Platforms
The Environment
Health Care
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Political Parties have to Address many issues
Funding for Education
Legal Issues
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Political Parties have to Address many issues
Social Welfare issues
Taxiation Taxes are too high!!!
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Political Parties have to Address many issues

• Military spending is always an important issue.
  For some, spending on infrastructure and
  Healthcare is more important than funding
  Canadas military.
• For others, Canadas lack of sufficient military
  spending has been an international embarrassment.

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Who decides Policy? Interest Groups

• Interest groups try to influence policy makers to
  adopt laws in accordance with their views.
• Ducks Unlimited tries to influence environmental
  policies.
• The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) tries to
  influence trade policies (e.g. Nafta).
• Some interest groups are more effective than
  others. Why would this be the case?

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Who decides Policy? Interest Groups

• Some Interest Groups like the CFIB are very
  influencial with parties like the Conservative
  Party while groups like the CLC are popular with
  the NDP.
• However, some groups are so radical
  (controversial) that main stream parties are
  afraid to take up their cause (e.g. GreenPeace).
• Can the tactics of Greenpeace still be effective?
  Is the support of the mainstream parties
  necessary?

The CFIB
Greenpeace making their point!
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Interest Groups Lobbyists

• Lobbyists are paid by corporations to influence
  public policy.
• For instance, if you are a company that wants low
  corporate taxes, you lobby the government for
  lower taxiation.
• If you want to secure a large government
  contract, you hire a lobbyist to bend the ear
  of the Prime Minister and members of the Cabinet.
• Some Lobbyists are highly influencial especially
  former prime ministers!

Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney (left) Acted
as a Lobbyist for Airbus Corporation Represented
by Karl-Heinz Schrieber (right)
Should Lobbying be legal?
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Canadas Political Parties

• Based on their Party Platforms, who would you
  vote for?

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Remember They want your Vote!

• Although you need to be 18 to vote in Canadian
  Federal elections, the main political parties
  care about your opinions.
• Why is this so? Why are the young liberals so
  important to the Liberal Party of Canada?
• What role do you want to play in politics? Do
  you want to join a political party? Explain your
  answer!

The Liberal Youth Wing
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What have we learned?

• Key Terms
• The Political Spectrum
• Mainstream Political Issues
• Political Parties in Canada
• Electoral Success
• How to influence the Creation of Policies
• How to become involved in politics.
• Future Directions