WEEK 9 — ELECTIONS & VOTERS

Elections in Canada: Purpose & Structure

Functions of Elections

  • The core mechanism of representative democracy.

  • Elections allow citizens to:

    • choose governments

    • hold officials accountable

    • influence policy direction

    • express political preferences

  • Legitimizes government authority — elected officials rule with public consent.

Nature of Representation

  • Elections decide who speaks for the public in Parliament.

  • Different ideas of representation:

    • Delegate model – MP should follow constituency wishes.

    • Trustee model – MP acts on personal judgment.

    • Partisan model – MP votes according to party policy.

Election Timeline & Frequency

  • Federal elections are scheduled every 4 years under fixed-date legislation.

  • However, in parliamentary systems, elections can occur earlier if:

    • government loses a confidence vote

    • Prime Minister requests dissolution

  • Campaigns are normally short (35–50 days), compared to much longer U.S.-style campaigns.

Who Can Vote

  • Universal suffrage for:

    • Canadian citizens

    • 18+ years old

  • Restrictions:

    • Must be properly registered

    • Must cast a ballot in the riding where they reside

  • Voting is voluntary, unlike countries with compulsory voting (e.g., Australia).

Elections Canada / Role of Administration

  • Independent, non-partisan agency.

  • Responsible for:

    • voter registration

    • drawing electoral boundaries

    • administering polls, ballots

    • investigating electoral fraud

    • ensuring accessibility

  • Ensures fairness without political interference.

Single-Member Plurality (SMP) / First-Past-the-Post

Canada uses SMP, also called first-past-the-post (FPTP).

How SMP Works

  • Country divided into ridings (districts).

  • Each riding elects one Member of Parliament.

  • Winner is the candidate with the most votes — NOT necessarily a majority.

  • Voters cast one ballot for one candidate.

Consequences of SMP

  • Parties can win majority governments without winning a majority of votes.

  • Encourages regional concentration of support.

  • Penalizes parties with broad but shallow national support (e.g., Greens).

  • Fosters two main parties dominating Parliament.

Advantages of SMP

  • Simple to understand, simple to administer.

  • Produces stable majority governments.

  • Encourages clear accountability — winners and losers easily identifiable.

  • Keeps out extremist parties by requiring broad support.

Disadvantages of SMP

  • Seat distributions often do not match popular vote.

  • Many votes become “wasted votes” (cast for losing candidates).

  • Can lead to false majorities.

  • Parties with geographically dispersed support are underrepresented.

  • Encourages strategic voting rather than sincere voting.

Ballot Structure

(From slide images showing Canadian ballots.)

Canadian Ballot Features

  • Candidate name

  • Party affiliation

  • Party logo

  • Single X beside preferred candidate

  • Secret and uniform ballot style across the country

Electoral Boundaries & Ridings

Redistribution

  • Every 10 years, ridings are readjusted to reflect population changes.

  • Ensures representation by population (rep-by-pop).

  • Independent boundary commissions conduct this process.

Issues

  • Large rural ridings may have lower population but huge geographic size.

  • Urban ridings often contain far more diversity and density.

  • Risk of gerrymandering minimized by independent commissions.

Political Participation Patterns

Voter Turnout Trends

  • Canadian turnout peaked mid-20th century (~75%).

  • Recent elections show ~60–68% turnout.

  • Younger voters (18–24) generally turnout at much lower rates.

Factors Influencing Turnout

  • Education – strongest predictor; more education → higher turnout.

  • Income – low-income individuals vote less often.

  • Age – older Canadians vote consistently; youth often abstain.

  • Political interest – knowing about politics increases likelihood of voting.

  • Mobilization – being contacted by parties increases turnout.

Who Votes for Whom — Voting Behaviour

Sociological Factors

  • Class, religion, ethnicity, region.

  • Example patterns:

    • Alberta & Prairies → Conservative

    • Quebec → Bloc Québécois / Liberals

    • Atlantic Canada → Liberals / Conservatives

    • Urban centers → Liberal / NDP

    • Rural areas → Conservative

Psychological Factors

  • Party identification (“party ID”) = long-term psychological attachment.

  • In Canada, party ID is weaker than in the U.S., more volatile.

Issue Voting

  • Voters evaluate parties based on issue positions:

    • economy

    • healthcare

    • climate change

    • taxes

    • national unity

  • Issue salience varies by region and demographic group.

Leader Effects

  • Leader image matters heavily in modern elections.

  • Media personalization shifts focus from party to leader.

The Party System & Regionalism

Canada has a strong pattern of regional political identity.

Examples:

  • Bloc Québécois appealing to Quebec nationalism.

  • Conservatives dominant in the Prairies and Alberta.

  • Liberals strong in Ontario.

  • NDP strong in urban areas, BC, parts of Manitoba.

Regional polarization affects:

  • representation

  • policy debates

  • federal unity

Electoral Reform Debates

Common Alternatives

  • Proportional Representation (PR)

    • Seats match popular vote

    • More parties in Parliament

    • Higher fairness, but potentially less stable

  • Mixed-Member Proportional (MMP)

    • Combines local MPs with PR seats

    • Used in Germany & New Zealand

    • Balances local representation with vote proportionality

  • Ranked Ballot (Instant Runoff Voting)

    • Voters rank candidates

    • Ensures majority support for winners

    • Favours centrist parties

Arguments For Reform

  • Fairer results

  • Fewer wasted votes

  • Increased representation of women & minorities

  • Encourages collaboration instead of polarization

Arguments Against Reform

  • Can produce unstable coalition governments

  • More complicated ballots

  • Weakens direct accountability of MPs

Turnout Decline & Explanations

Political Causes

  • Declining party membership

  • Weaker ties between parties and social groups

  • Rise of cynicism and distrust

Social Causes

  • Changes in civic culture

  • Less community involvement

  • Younger generations less institutionally attached

Institutional Causes

  • SMP discourages voting in “safe seats”

  • Few competitive ridings reduce motivation

  • Lack of mandatory voting laws

Youth Vote

  • Lowest turnout group.

  • Reasons for low youth turnout:

    • Not contacted by parties

    • Lower political knowledge

    • Transient living arrangements

    • Distrust in political institutions

  • When mobilized, youth turnout rises dramatically (seen in 2015).

Why People Don’t Vote

  • Alienation (“my vote doesn’t matter”)

  • Apathy (“don’t care about politics”)

  • Lack of knowledge

  • Logistical barriers

  • Satisfaction with status quo

Who Runs for Office

Candidate Recruitment

  • Parties recruit strategically.

  • Candidates often come from:

    • business

    • law

    • activism

    • public sector

  • Barriers:

    • cost of campaigning

    • lack of networks

    • discrimination

    • family/care responsibilities

Representation Gaps

  • Women

  • Indigenous peoples

  • Visible minorities

  • Disabled Canadians
    are still underrepresented in Parliament.

Campaigns & Media

Campaign Strategies

  • Leader’s tour

  • Debates

  • Policy announcements

  • Microtargeting

  • Data-driven outreach

Media Logic

  • Horse-race coverage (who’s winning) dominates policy coverage.

  • Sound bites & leader images disproportionately shape public perception.

Social Media

  • Enables direct voter engagement.

  • Reinforces echo chambers & misinformation.

  • Platforms used for micro-advertising.

Polls

Roles of Polls

  • Influence party strategy

  • Can affect voter expectations

  • Inform journalists

  • Potential bandwagon or underdog effects

Concerns

  • Varying methodology

  • Misleading results

  • Public over-reliance on polls

Political Knowledge

  • Political knowledge in Canada is highly unequal.

  • Education strongly correlated with:

    • turnout

    • informed voting

    • political engagement

Low information environments reduce the quality of electoral decision-making.

Government Formation

Types of Government Outcomes

  • Majority Government

    • Party wins >50% of seats

    • Strong stability and legislative power

  • Minority Government

    • Party wins most seats but <50%

    • Must rely on other parties to pass legislation

    • Common in SMP but can lead to instability

  • Coalition (rare in Canada)

    • Formal sharing of cabinet positions between parties

Confidence & Confidence Votes

  • Government must maintain the confidence of the House.

  • Losing confidence → election or new government formation.

How Governments Fall

  • Loss on:

    • budget vote

    • throne speech

    • explicit confidence motion

  • PM may request dissolution even without loss of confidence.

Political Parties: Functions

  • Recruit candidates

  • Aggregate interests

  • Develop policy

  • Structure parliamentary decision-making

  • Mobilize voters

Parties are essential intermediaries between citizens and the state.