While the American Presidential debates are heating up, Canadians are quietly moving towards
a total political 180.
Canada’s 2015 Federal Election is on October 19th, and could see a dramatic shift in not
only the ruling party, but the country’s relations worldwide.
So, we wanted to know, is Canada undergoing a political revolution?
Well, it’s important to note that Canada’s government is similar but distinct from the
US’s.
As a parliamentary democracy, they don’t have a President, but they do have a Prime
Minister, and technically, a Queen.
While the Prime Minister has no term limits, Canada’s elected parliament is completely
refreshed every five years.
This 2015 election will see Canadians voting for a whole new House of Commons.
338 parliamentary seats are up for grabs.
The party that wins the most seats gets to select the country’s Prime Minister, and
is known as the Governing Party.
The one that gets the second most members is the Opposition Party.
This effectively allows Canadians to vote in both their head of government and their
parliament at the same time.
Unlike the US’s two party dominated system, Canada enjoys a wide variety of parties, with
three major and four minor ones in the most recent parliament.
This fosters considerably more cooperation and debate on controversial issues.
So what’s the current situation?
Well, the three primary parties vying for majority power are The Conservative Party,
the New Democrat Party, and the Liberal Party.
The Conservatives have been in power for almost a decade, and seen a parliamentary majority
since 2011.
But the current Conservative Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, has been having trouble lately,
due to accusations of fraud, government deregulation, and overspending.
On the other side of the political spectrum, the Liberal Party has long been seen as the
leftist alternative.
Throughout Canadian history, the Conservative and Liberal Parties have almost always occupied
governing or opposition status.
But that changed in 2011.
The election was the first time the New Democrat Party surpassed the Liberal Party to represent
the second most seats.
This strong showing has many wondering if the NDP could beat out the long standing Conservative
Party in the current elections.
Such a win would be huge for Canadian politics.
The NDP is considered “farther left”, and supports unions and social democracy.
Their leader, and potential Prime Minister, is Tom Mulcair, who has seen considerable
popularity, especially among French-speaking Districts.
The election of the NDP would dramatically shift current conversations with the US in
regards to the XL Pipeline and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, about both of which Mulcair has
voiced severe concerns.
More specifically, it would shift Canada’s current ideological path away from pro-banking
and business, towards the environment and fiscal liberalism.
Whichever party comes out on top, the rise of the New Democrats is a relatively unprecedented
event, and shows just how much Canada’s political spectrum has already changed.
Some parts of Canada are already seeing the effects of this fiscal liberalism — like
Quebec, which has government-subsidized childcare.
Find out more about Quebec in the video up top.
Or, if you want to learn about Canada’s power as a country, check the video at the
bottom.
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