POLI-221 Study Notes

Canada’s Electoral System

Single Member Plurality (SMP)

  • Canada is divided into electoral divisions known as ridings.

  • Each riding elects one Member of Parliament (MP).

  • Elections are conducted under a first-past-the-post (FPTP) system, meaning:

    • The candidate who garners the most votes in a riding wins.

    • There is no requirement to achieve a majority (more than 50%) of the votes.

  • No proportional representation is involved in SMP.

  • Seat allocation in the provinces is generally based on population, with specific exceptions:

    • Prince Edward Island (PEI) is guaranteed 4 seats.

    • New Brunswick (NB) is guaranteed 10 seats.

    • The three territories each receive one seat.

  • Boundaries for federal electoral ridings are redrawn every ten years by a three-member commission, as established in Courtney (2001).

Fixed Election Dates and Electoral Reform

  • The fixed-date legislation adopted in 2007 mandates federal elections to be held every four years on the third Monday of October.

  • However, the electoral calendar is flexible due to the dynamics of a parliamentary democracy, allowing for dissolution of Parliament at any moment (e.g., loss of confidence in the House).

  • Electoral reform discussions focus on alternatives to the first-past-the-post system:

    • Proportional representation (PR)

    • Single transferable vote (STV)

  • Each proposed system would affect the electoral success of political parties differently. Hybrid systems, similar to those in Germany and New Zealand, are subjects of active debate in Canada.

Proportional Representation (PR)

  • PR is defined as an electoral system designed to establish a representative body that accurately reflects the public’s support for each political party.

  • Key aspects include:

    • Unlike majority or plurality systems that favor strong parties and marginalize weaker ones by assigning entire constituency representation to one candidate (who might not have won more than half the votes, as observed in the United States and Canada), PR grants minority groups representation proportional to their electoral support.

    • Countries that implement systems of PR include:

    • Belgium

    • Denmark

    • Finland

    • Greece

    • Hungary

    • Israel

    • Italy

    • Luxembourg

    • Norway

    • Russia

    • Spain

    • Sweden

    • Switzerland

    • (Source: Encyclopedia Britannica)

Results of the 2021 Federal Elections (FVC)

  • Breakdown of popular vote and seats won by each party as of 3 PM ET on September 21, 2021:

    • Hootlet: Popular Vote 2.3%, Seats 5.1%

    • Other Data:

    • % of Votes and Seats: 7.4% (10% seats), 32.2% (17.7% seats), 7.8% (46.7% seats), 35.2% (33.9% seats)

Mixed Member Proportional (MPP)

  • The Mixed Member Proportional representation system, recommended by the Law Commission of Canada in 2004, features:

    • A blend of local representation and proportional representation.

    • Approximately 60% of MPs will be local riding representatives elected through a winner-take-all system.

    • The remaining 40% of MPs will be regional representatives elected through a regional vote, allowing voters to cast two votes:

    • One for a local MP.

    • One for regional MPs from the voter’s region.

2021 Federal Elections Results under MMP

  • Comparative data highlighting vote percentages and seat allocations for each party under both First Past the Post (FPTP) and Mixed Member Proportional (MMP):

    • Conservative Party:

    • FPTP: 33.7% Votes, 119 Seats

    • MMP: 34.6% Votes, 117 Seats

    • Liberal Party:

    • FPTP: 32.6% Votes, 159 Seats

    • MMP: 37.0% Votes, 125 Seats

    • NDP (New Democratic Party):

    • FPTP: 17.8% Votes, 25 Seats

    • MMP: 59 Seats, 17.5% Votes

    • Bloc Québécois:

    • FPTP: 7.7% Votes, 33 Seats

    • MMP: 7.7% Votes, 26 Seats

    • People’s Party of Canada (PPC):

    • FPTP: 5.0% Votes, 0 Seats

    • MMP: 2.4% Votes, 8 Seats

    • Green Party:

    • FPTP: 2.3% Votes, 2 Seats

    • MMP: 0.9% Votes, 3 Seats

    • Others:

    • % of Votes and Seats various (0.9% Votes = 0 Seats)

Single Transferable Vote (STV)

  • The STV system allows larger electoral regions to elect multiple representatives (e.g., teams of 4 or 5), enhancing the representation of diverse opinions.

  • On election day, voters rank candidates by preference, writing a number:

    • Number one for their top preference,

    • Number two for their second choice, and so on.

  • Voters may choose to rank as many or as few candidates as desired.

  • Parties frequently field multiple candidates in each area.

  • The vote counting process allows for transferring votes from one candidate to another based on the preference rankings if the top choice has enough votes or has no chance of winning.

2021 Federal Elections: FPTP vs STV

  • Comparative results between First Past the Post (FPTP) and Single Transferable Vote (STV) scenarios illustrating party performance percentages and seats:

    • Conservative Party:

    • FPTP: 33.7% Votes, 119 Seats

    • STV: 37.0% Votes, 125 Seats

    • Liberal Party:

    • FPTP: 32.6% Votes, 159 Seats

    • STV: 35.8% Votes, 121 Seats

    • NDP:

    • FPTP: 17.8% Votes, 25 Seats

    • STV: 17.5% Votes, 59 Seats

    • Bloc Québécois:

    • FPTP: 7.7% Votes, 33 Seats

    • STV: 7.7% Votes, 26 Seats

    • PPC:

    • FPTP: 5.0% Votes, 0 Seats

    • STV: 1.8% Votes, 6 Seats

    • Green Party:

    • FPTP: 2.3% Votes, 2 Seats

    • STV: 0.3% Votes, 1 Seat

    • Others:

    • Vote percentage and seats varied across systems but remained minimal.

Next Week’s Readings (Beyond the Textbook)

  • Key Reading Prompts:

    • Examine how Johnston (2009) describes the relationship between political parties and Canada’s electoral system.

    • Consider the competing democratic norms identified by Pruysers and Cross (2016) regarding the candidate selection process in Canada.