The%20Election%20Process

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The Election Process

• CHV20- Ms Levy

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(No Transcript)
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Why do we have elections so often?!

• 1. it makes the government accountable to the
  people
• 2. provides opportunities for the people to voice
  their needs and choose their government

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Canadas Electoral system

• Canada is divided into over 300 ridings
• of ridings is based on population
• Federal elections must be called every 4 years by
  law
• How do we decide on when to have an election?
• 1. Prime Minister advises the Governor General to
  dissolve the House of Commons and calls an
  election
• 2. If the government is defeated in a vote of
  non-confidence
• 3. The 4 year term is up!

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Role of the Media

• Major players
• Present candidate in the best light
• Millions spent (travel, advertising)
• Ads also cast negative images or impressions of
  their opponents
• Ex 1993, Kim Campbell (PM, PC) emphasized Jean
  Chretiens speech disability

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A few video campaigns

• http//www.youtube.com/watch?featureendscreenNR
  1vPSmJaPICle8
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vPlvNyPNPEskfeature
  relmfu
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vlz6KaYRdt6w
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vT0HjGEUoTvQ
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vVIA5aszzA18
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vH3a7FC0Jkv8

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Election Day

• Leaders maintain high profile
• Advance polls allows people to vote who might
  not vote otherwise (ex. Will be out of town, in
  hospital etc)
• Media in Canada is not allowed to advertise until
  the voting is over!!!
• Can influence decisions
• Ex 2004 Internet shared decisions long before
  the West had finished casting their ballots

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Polls

• Located at churches, schools, legions etc
• Right and Responsibility as a citizen
• Once at polling station directed to a table to
  check the voters list
• Must be
• 18
• Canadian Citizen
• On Voters List most ppl are on it when they
  turn 18 and file their income tax return.
• http//www.elections.ca/content.aspx?sectionvotd
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Counting Ballots Majority

• In order to win a riding, a candidate does not
  need to receive a clear majority (50 1) of
  the votes.
• P.C. 200 (majority)
• Liberal 50
• NDP 51
• the candidate only needs to receive a relative
  majority (also called a plurality majority),
  meaning that she/he received more votes than any
  other candidate in the riding district.

101
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Majority govt continued

• This means that even if all the opposition
  parties voted against the government, it will
  still be able to pass legislation
• Often lasts for the full term.

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Counting Ballots Minority

• Party elects more members to Parliament than any
  other, BUT not more than all the other parties
  added together
• P.C 150 (majority of seats)
• Liberal 75
• NDP 76

151
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Minority govt continued

• Leader of party goes to the Governor General for
  permission to form a government
• If GG agrees, the leader becomes PM and forms a
  cabinet
• Then government goes to the House of Commons and
  seeks a vote of confidence
• Usually governing party meets with the opposition
  leaders and tries to make an agreement for their
  support by offering to include some of their
  ideas in government legislation

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When a proposed bill receives less than a
majority of votes in the House of Commons,
defeating the government and forcing it to resign.
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If the government does not get a vote of
confidence

• GG has 2 options
• Calls the leader with the 2nd largest seats to
  attempt to form a government
• OR
• A new election

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Video the difference between minority and
majority provincial govts

• http//www.youtube.com/watch?v9G_ro-EhW4c

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Counting Ballots Coalition

• Coalition Government when no party has a
  majority in Parliament then 2 or more parties
  can join together to form a government
• P.C. 10
• Liberal 20
• NDP 20

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Examples of these types of governments in
Canadian History

• Majority Governments
• Sir John A Macdonald in 1867
• Trudeau in 1974
• Brian Mulroney in 1988
• Jean Chretien in 1993, 1997, and 2000!!
• Stephen Harper in 2011
• Minority
• Sir John A Macdonald 1882
• Mackenzie King in 1921, 1925 and again in 1945
• John Diefenbaker 1957
• Lester Pearson in 1963 again in 1965
• Pierre Trudeau in 1972
• Joe Clark in 1974
• Paul Martin in 2004
• Stephen Harper in 2006 again in 2008
• Coalition

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One Vote Matters

• Those who stay away from the election think that
  one vote will do no good Tis but one step more
  to think one vote will do no harm.
• Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Why vote?!

• The right to vote is one of the cornerstones of a
  modern democratic government.
• It is seen by many political scientists as the.
  single most important element of a democracy
• The reason for the importance of the vote is to
  provide citizens with the opportunity to choose
  their own government.

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Why arent Canadians voting??

• As reported by Elections Canada, voter turnout
  among Canadians is at an all time low.
• concerned about the low rates of young voter
  turnout
• Occasionally, citizens can develop an apathetic
  (lacking interest or concern indifferent)
  approach.
• The sense that in a society of millions of
  people, a single vote has little or no meaning.
• Consider this however - in the United States (a
  nation of well over 300 million people), during
  the 2000 federal election, the Presidency was
  decided by a mere 537 votes in the state of
  Florida, resulting in the election of George W.
  Bush.

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Homework questions

• What are some other reasons why people dont
  vote?
• What, then, are some of the solutions being
  discussed by Canadians?

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Importance of Reason for Not Voting ( very or fairly important) 68 58 67 48 57 38 47 30 37 25 29  21-24 18-20 Total
Just not interested 31.4 34.0 46.4 50.6 51.8 59.3 57.0 59.1 52.9
Didnt like parties/candidates 41.7 40.8 56.0 50.9 46.9 43.2 50.7 45.3 47.6
Vote wouldnt matter 30.6 37.5 47.1 37.9 41.1 36.7 34.3 30.4 37.1
Didnt care about issues 42.9 28.0 35.7 37.3 36.6 32.8 37.7 36.5 36.0
Busy at work 16.7 14.3 16.5 24.8 36.9 33.9 38.6 40.9 32.2
Out of town 19.4 34.7 16.7 19.3 18.3 21.5 25.1 24.8 21.8
Didnt know where or when 28.6 12.2 12.9 9.4 19.2 24.4 28.5 28.4 21.1
Not on the list 25.7 16.3 15.5 16.8 16.0 20.3 18.4 24.2 18.7
Too many elections 26.2 24.5 20.0 18.5 21.4 16.5 13.0 9.5 17.3
Illness 41.7 20.4 11.9 11.8 8.5 10.7 9.2 10.8 11.7
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• What are some other reasons why people dont
  vote?
• Elections issues are not seen as controversial
  nor key to the survival of the country (e.g.,
  separation of Quebec)
• Satisfied with the present government, thus there
  is no need to vote for change
• Voting is seen mainly as a right, not a duty
• Dont have enough information about the election
  process and/or the participants
• Generally less interested in politics at a
  national level more interested in global issues

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• What, then, are some of the solutions being
  discussed by Canadians?
• Make voting compulsory. Australia, Belgium and
  Greece all have laws which have made voting
  compulsory.
• Change the conditions for voting
• Drop the voting age from 18 to 16
• Allow for voting through the mail or Internet
  based voting
• Allow voting on other days, such as on a weekend
  (elections are traditionally held on Mondays)