40th Canadian federal election
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Canadian federal election (more formally, the 40th Canadian General Election) was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian
House of Commons
of the 40th Canadian Parliament
after the previous parliament
had been dissolved by the Governor General
on September 7, 2008. The election yielded a minority government
under the Conservative Party of Canada
, led by the incumbent Prime Minister
, Stephen Harper
.
The election call resulted in the cancellation of four federal by-elections that had been scheduled to occur in September.
In 2007, Parliament passed a law fixing federal election dates every four years and scheduling the next election date as October 19, 2009, but the law does not (and constitutionally cannot) limit the powers of the Governor General to dissolve Parliament at any time, such as when opposition parties
bring down the government on a vote of confidence. In this election there was no loss of a non-confidence vote, but the Prime Minister asked the Governor General to call an election. The Governor General granted the Prime Minister's request.
. The Conservative Party
received the most votes of any single party, with 36% of the vote and 124 seats (127 at dissolution). The Liberal Party won fewer seats than in 2006 — 103 seats (96 at dissolution), and 30% of the vote. The Bloc Québécois lost three seats, lowering its total to 51 seats (48 at dissolution), with 10.5% of the vote. The NDP retained its seats held at the dissolution of Parliament
, and won 11 more, making its total 29 seats (30 at dissolution), with 17.5% of the vote. The Green Party
received 4.5% of the vote, a minimal increase from the previous election, but did not win any seats (1 at dissolution). Independents
and other parties constituted 1% of the total vote with one independent winning a seat.
Since the 2006 election, seven Members of Parliament
(MPs) have changed party: David Emerson
, Wajid Khan
and Joe Comuzzi
from Liberal to Conservative; Garth Turner
from Conservative to Independent to Liberal; Blair Wilson
from Liberal to Independent to Green; Louise Thibault
from Bloc Québécois to Independent; and Bill Casey
from Conservative to Independent. In by-elections, the NDP gained one seat from the Liberal Party, while the Conservative Party gained two seats, one from the Liberals and one from the Bloc Québécois. Four seats were vacant when the election was called: three previously held by the Liberal Party, one by the Bloc Québécois.
The parliament preceding this election
was led by the Conservatives, who governed with the smallest minority ever in the Canadian House of Commons, just 40.6% of the seats. Although the average length of a minority parliament
in Canada is 1 year, 5 months, and 22 days, minorities led by the former Progressive Conservative Party
have been much shorter: the longest previous Conservative minority was just 6 months and 19 days. The 39th Parliament became Canada's longest serving Conservative minority on October 24, 2006.
On May 30, 2006, the Conservatives tabled Bill C-16, which would amend the Canada Elections Act
to provide fixed election dates. The bill received royal assent on May 3, 2007. The bill states that there will be an election in 2009, and it would be the first to have a fixed election date, the third Monday in October (October 19, 2009). Despite the bill, on September 7, 2008, the Prime Minister
sought the dissolution of the 39th Parliament, and the Governor General agreed to hold a general election on October 14, 2008.
On February 15, 2007, The Globe and Mail
reported that the Conservatives were preparing for an election expected to be called shortly after the 2007 budget, due on March 19, 2007. Part of the reason for the timing of the election was given as strengthening Conservative poll numbers coupled with the desire to take advantage of the perception that Harper has "better leadership qualities than Liberal counterpart Stéphane Dion
".
On March 17, 2007, an internal Conservative Party memo was leaked to The Canadian Press, telling members that they "need to be ready to campaign within the next week". The memo asked members to donate $75 to $150 to help to fund the early stages of the election campaign. None of these predictions for a federal election to occur in 2007 proved true, but the majority of pundits still believed a federal election would be triggered before the fixed election date of October 19, 2009, for sometime in 2008.
Stephen Harper
hinted at the possibility of dissolving parliament on August 14, 2008. Speaking in Newfoundland and Labrador
, he cited Stéphane Dion as the main player in making Parliament become increasingly "dysfunctional". "I’m going to have to make a judgment in the next little while as to whether or not this Parliament can function productively," Harper said. This came after repeated confidence votes
that resulted in the NDP and Bloc parties not voting in favour of the government, and the Liberal Party voting in favour or not attending the vote. Rumours of a possible fall election were further fuelled by Harper's announcement of a fourth federal by-election for September 22 in the Toronto riding of Don Valley West
.
On August 27, 2008. Harper asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean
to cancel her trip to the Paralympic Games in Beijing
, adding fuel to speculation that the Prime Minister would seek a dissolution. On September 7, 2008 after much speculation, Harper asked the Governor General to call a federal election on October 14, 2008
In Quebec City
, several ballot boxes containing votes from advanced polls disappeared after the close of advance polling on October 7. The boxes were stored in a closet at the home of a deputy returning officer. Although there was no tampering of the boxes or the votes, three deputy returning officers were fired. Deputy returning officers are the only polling officials allowed to handle ballots during the vote count and the law did allow for them to store the sealed boxes as may be necessary in large remote rural ridings. However the boxes were returned a day late after the riding returning officer ordered their return.
premier Danny Williams
and his "Anything But Conservative
" campaign, to ideological. The popular website VoteForEnvironment.ca, which received over one million page views in the first 12 days of its existence and whose founders were interviewed on CBC and other mainstream media, showed regional breakdowns per riding and offered recommendations based on which candidate was most likely to beat the Conservative candidate. If the Conservative candidate had little chance of winning the riding or was strongly entrenched, the site recommended "vote with your heart." Similarly, a vote swapping organization on Facebook
entitled "Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada" also gained press. The premise of that organization is that eligible voters in different electoral districts may exchange their votes, so that an opponent of a Conservative candidate in each district might have a better chance of being elected in that district. Elections Canada deemed the practice legal.
Green Party leader Elizabeth May sent out mixed signals about strategic voting. On October 12, she recommended that in close ridings, supporters of green policies should consider voting for the NDP or Liberals to defeat the Conservatives, but on the same day she said "I do not support strategic voting and I have not advised voters to choose any candidate other than Green." In addition, during the final days of the campaign the Liberals attempted to attract strategic NDP and Green votes to stop the Conservatives, and the Conservatives attempted to attract Bloc votes to stop the Liberals.
was the lowest in Canadian election history, as 59.1% of the electorate
cast a ballot. All federally funded parties except for the Greens attracted fewer total votes than in 2006; the Greens received nearly 280,000 more votes. The Conservatives lost about 170,000 votes, the Liberals 850,000, the Bloc 170,000 and the NDP 70,000. Some voters were at first turned away because of failure to meet new and stricter proof of address requirements, including 2/3 of those attempting to vote at Dalhousie University
, for example. The effect this may have had on voter turnout is unknown.
Judicial recounts were ordered in six ridings. In one case, Brossard—La Prairie
, the judicial recount overturned the reported victor, giving the seat to the Liberals' Alexandra Mendès
instead of the Bloc incumbent Marcel Lussier
.
In four other ridings, the recount confirmed the election results, although Liberal Ujjal Dosanjh
's margin in Vancouver South was reduced from 33 votes to just 20. This was the slimmest victory of any riding in the entire election, until the results of the Kitchener-Waterloo recount reduced Peter Braid's margin of victory to a mere 17 votes. Dosanjh's Conservative opponent, Wai Young, appealed the recount to the Supreme Court of British Columbia
, citing that not all of the ballot boxes were fully recounted. All ballots were eventually counted by November 4, confirming Dosanjh's victory by 20 votes, after the initial partial recount indicated a margin of 22 votes.
In a sixth riding, the recount was cancelled when the elector who had requested it withdrew the request.
, Northwest Territories
. The Conservative Party of Canada fueled rumours of an oncoming election when it released several campaign advertisements
that focused on a range of issues, and attacked the Liberal Party of Canada for their proposed carbon tax
. The Prime Minister's Office
(PMO) confirmed that Harper would call an election for October 14 after meeting with New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton
and Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe
, which gave the Prime Minister little hope that a fall session of Parliament can be productive, PMO officials said. Senior government officials announced on the first of September that Stephen Harper would ask the Governor General, Michaëlle Jean
, to dissolve parliament and call an election for October 14, after he met with Liberal leader Stéphane Dion who called the meeting a "charade". Dion said the two were unable to agree on how to make the upcoming session of Parliament, slated to begin September 15, more productive.
Liberal Party members gathered in Winnipeg
on September 2, for a three day caucus which changed from preparing for a new parliamentary session to a strategy session to formulate a plan to attack the Conservatives while healing internal party rifts that have surfaced in recent weeks. Conservatives began spending at least $60 million dollars on pre-election funding projects to a wide variety of institutions and groups. A few announcements have been big, including Industry Minister
Jim Prentice
's pledge of $25 million for the expansion of the Northlands
exhibition facility in Edmonton
. But the Tories have also announced a number of smaller projects, including $40,000 for the 2008 55+ Games and $25,000 for the Peace Window of the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Winnipeg. The announcements have also been spread out across the country. The Atlantic region is to get more than $500,000 for youth jobs and eight cultural organizations. The Association of Book Publishers of British Columbia
will receive $81,000. Jack Layton attacked the Conservative Party as bribing the public and doing the same thing they used to complain about the Liberals doing before elections.
A survey conducted by Environics found that 38 per cent of Canadians would vote for the Conservative party if an election were held immediately, 28 per cent would vote for the Liberal party, 19 for the NDP, eight for the Bloc Québécois and seven for the Green party. The poll shows Conservatives taking early leads in Ontario
, British Columbia and the Prairies
. In Atlantic Canada
, Liberals still hold a strong majority, while in Quebec the Bloc Québécois leads while the Conservatives and Liberals are almost tied for second. When asked, most Canadians said the Conservatives would handle the economy better, while most said the Liberals would handle the environment better.
On September 7, Harper officially asked for the dissolution of Parliament, and called for an election on October 14.
attacking the Conservative's record, presenting the Liberal plan, and rejected the accusation by Harper that the Liberal party is a risky choice. Jack Layton
took a more forceful approach than previous elections, in which the New Democratic Party has just tried to maintain a high number of seats in Parliament to influence government. Layton has made it clear he will campaign for the position of prime minister itself this time, but also returned to a longstanding NDP theme: alleged abuses by big business. He promised to stop what he called "ripoffs" by big oil, cellphone and banks, and his attacks are expected to focus on the Conservatives and all but ignore the Liberals. Elizabeth May
of the Green Party said Canadians would care enough about the environment to vote for her party, as long as she was able to get into the television debates. Stephen Harper has stated his objection to including the Green Party into television debates because of the similar policies of the Green and Liberal party, and how it would be unfair. Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe
said the Conservatives must be prevented from winning a majority, and the BQ
is the only party that can do that. Duceppe compared Harper to US President
George W. Bush
, and said the government is incompetent.
The French-language debate aired on Wednesday, October 1 from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT
, moderated by Stéphan Bureau
, a journalist and host. The English-language debate aired Thursday, October 2 from 9 to 11 p.m. EDT, with Steve Paikin
of TVOntario
as moderator.
Stephen Harper and Jack Layton are reported to have said that if the Green Party were included, they would not participate in the Leaders' Debates. Dion said that while he supports May's inclusion, he would not attend if Harper does not, and the Bloc Québécois has stated it will not boycott the debates if May is included. The media consortium in charge of the debate, made up of the CBC
, CTV
, Global Television
and TVA
, had decided that it would prefer to broadcast the debates with the four major party leaders, rather than risk not at all or with minimal participation. The Green Party indicated they had begun procedures to lodge a formal complaint with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, as they have in past federal elections.
On September 10, Harper and Layton released statements that they would not oppose May's inclusion in the debate, citing public backlash and protests — with neither acknowledging making the threat of boycotting the debate — and that the media consortium would reconvene to discuss the matter. Layton stated that "debating about the debate" had become a "distraction", and that he had only one condition, that Stephen Harper be there. In response, spokespeople for Stephen Harper announced they would not stand alone in opposition to the Green Party's inclusion in the debates and also changed their position on the matter. Later that day the consortium announced that May would be allowed to participate in the debate.
On October 1, the day of the first debate, it was announced that both debates would get extended time, from 12 to 30 minutes, for the economy, and leaders would not give opening and closing statements, to allow for longer discussions on the economy without removing time from other topics. It was also revealed that instead of leaders standing at individual podiums for the debate, as had been done in past years, the debate would be done in a round table
format.
Much of French debate revolved around the economy and the environment, with the two topics repeatedly being brought up in discussions allotted for other topics. Stephen Harper came under criticism from every other leader in nearly every topic, especially the economy and environment, with the other party leaders stating that Harper's politics had led to Canada's current crises in those two areas. Their points included that Harper's environmental plan was considered the worst of all developed countries by organizations around the world, with Elizabeth May labeling it "a type of fraud," and that his attempts to remove regulations in the financial sectors, similar to those done by the Bush administration in the United States, have led Canada to being nearly as hard hit by the current financial crisis as the United States.
Continuous comparisons of Harper to George W. Bush
were made over the course of the debate, with Jack Layton stating at one point that with Bush ending his presidency at the end of the year, Harper would be "the last leader of a developed country to follow the Bush doctrine
."
Following the same tone as the French debate, much of the discussion revolved around the economy and the environment. The other four leaders keep criticizing Harper, especially for his lack of an economic platform despite asking for the format change to focus more on the economy in light of the ongoing financial crisis, and instead using the time to criticize the economic platforms of the other leaders. May lashed out at Harper for not understanding that Canadians were worried about their homes, jobs and finances, and comparing the current situation to Dutch disease
, Dion stated that the only thing that keeps Canada from being hit as hard by the crisis as the US are laws created by the previous Liberal government that the Conservatives had been attempting to overturn, Duceppe repeatedly criticized Harper for financial practices and attitudes similar to the Bush administration, and Layton at one point stated that Harper's position showed he was either incompetent or uncaring to the situation, and asked which one he was, to which Harper did not respond. Harper also came under criticism for his laissez-faire attitude to the job sector, supporting primarily the oil companies and companies that outsource jobs in the manufacturing sector.
When it turned to the environment, the Carbon Tax proposal came up repeatedly, with both Dion and May supporting it, although May to more ambitious figures than Dion, pointing out it was the most recommended and proven way to deal with carbon emissions by countries and organizations around the world, noting the growth that Sweden and Germany have had with this system. Harper criticized the plan, saying would increase taxpayers' burden and that Dion should be "honest with the people" that some environmental measures will cost the economy and said the plan includes $40 billion in carbon taxes and $26 billion in tax cuts. Dion defended the Liberal's Green Shift, saying that "[Harper's statements are] not true at all", and that "for every dollar that we will raise, you will have a tax cut, and these tax cuts will be on your income". Duceppe commented that he would like targets to be applied to individual provinces, thereby allowing Quebec to financially benefit due to already-implemented greenhouse gas reductions. Layton, who favours a cap-and-trade system
, said that it is a "figment of Mr. Harper's imagination" that emissions will fall under his plan. When Harper sought to outline his government's record on other environmental fronts, giving examples of his minority government supported the preservation of hundreds of thousands of hectares of environmentally sensitive land through the Nature Conservancy of Canada
, and that the government declared a protected marine area by Lake Superior
and created a whale sanctuary by Baffin Island
, May responded by saying "The only word he said that's true is on national parks".
Layton also criticized Dion for his lack of accomplishments as official opposition during the minority government, and his party's previous leader's broken promises in areas such as Child Care and Pharmacare.
Duceppe painted the Conservative government's $45 million in national arts and culture funding cuts as an assault on the province's identity, saying "How can you recognize the Quebec nation and then cut culture [funding], which is the soul of a nation?" followed by citing the economic benefits of culture.
Harper also said he had erred in calling for Canada's participation in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, saying "It was absolutely an error, it's obviously clear", adding that the claim of weapons of mass destruction proved false.
Commenting on the debate, Layton said that he "thoroughly enjoyed" May's contributions to the debate. Reporter Julie Van Dusen
said that Harper managed to take the hits calmly, as "someone must have told him … if you fight back or get too partisan, you're going to alienate voters, especially women". Duceppe said he was happy to have forced Harper to admit his support of joining the Iraq war in 2003 was a mistake, adding he will use the admission in the campaign as "Exhibit A" that the Conservative leader lacks solid judgment skills, and that Harper was weakened when he confirmed he does not support a refundable tax credit for the manufacturing industry to encourage companies to improve productivity.
citizens, with most leaders seeking to restore the funding. The Conservatives have stated that the money is being reallocated to other arts and cultural programs, including various official languages projects, the 400th anniversary of Quebec City
and projects connected with the 2010 Vancouver-Whistler Winter Olympic Games
, although the Conservative's refusal to have a parliamentary review of their cuts and for a moratorium on the measures until the House of Commons Heritage Committee had a chance to hold hearings on culture and arts funding has most opposition members calling foul.
Both Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton have promised to reverse the cut, with Dion also promising to increase funding to Canada Council for the Arts to $360 million, while Layton also promised to bring income averaging for artists to the national level and providing an annual tax exemption of $20,000 for income earned by copyright and residuals, stating that "one of the key things we must do, before we start giving $50-billion tax giveaways to banks and oil companies, is to protect and promote the arts" and "stable, sure and appropriate funding" for CBC/Radio-Canada
while also protecting Telefilm Canada
and the Canadian Television Fund
.
Harper has said that he believes that the issue is a "niche topic", and that "ordinary Canadians" are not particularly concerned with the issue. A group of Canadian performers, which included Art Hindle
, Wendy Crewson
and Gordon Pinsent
, held a press conference on September 24, saying the cuts would cripple the Canadian arts industry.
On September 29, Harper unveiled a new tax credit plan worth an estimated $150 million a year to encourage parents to enroll their kids in arts programs like music and drama. The credit will apply on up to $500 of eligible fees for children under 16 who participate in eligible arts activities. Harper said that "[the Conservatives] spend a lot more on culture and arts" but "in a way that we ensure is an effective use of taxpayers' money and ultimately, in this case, benefits families and all of society as well". Harper has come under criticism when the week before he expressed his opinion that "ordinary working people were unable to relate to taxpayer-subsidized cultural elites when they see them at a rich gala on television".
of Surrey North
, who was terminally ill with cancer at the time, had been offered a half-million life insurance policy in exchange for voting against the proposed Liberal budget in May 2005, which he turned down. Under section 119 of the Criminal Code of Canada
, it is illegal to bribe an MP. Accordingly, Opposition Liberal party Intergovernmental Affairs critic Dominic LeBlanc
asked the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
(RCMP) in February 2008 to investigate this allegation, that the Conservatives had offered Mr. Cadman a million-dollar life insurance policy in exchange for his support on the budget vote. In May 2008, the RCMP announced that there was not enough evidence to support charges.
Cadman died in July. The following month, Harper stated in a court deposition that he any such million-dollar offer would have to be authorized by him, and that he did not issue any such authorization. There is currently an ongoing legal battle between the Liberals and the Conservatives over the matter.
On September 24, while campaigning in Surrey North, Stephen Harper's campaign team barred reporters from talking with the local Conservative candidate, Dona Cadman
, who is Chuck Cadman's widow. The campaign team called in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
(RCMP), and ordered them to "Keep [the reporters] out" while Cadman was taken away by staff. Harper spokesman Kory Teneycke
later stated that he had not seen the incident, but the local candidates did not need to be interviewed, that "Local candidates' priority is campaigning in their local ridings, and not talking to the national media", and that it should be enough that they hold daily news conferences with the party's most prominent members.
The incident has reminded people of Conservative tactics during the 2006 election, where attempts by the media to speak with local candidates were stopped by campaign personnel, especially the Harold Albrecht
incident, where campaign officials forced Albrecht to stay in a restaurant kitchen when journalists attempted to interview him.
The Conservatives chose former U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
agent Bruce Koenig to analyze a tape of reporter Tom Zytaruk interviewing Harper on the Cadman bribe attempt. The tape was a key piece of evidence in the ongoing legal battle. On October 10, Koenig announced that the tape had not been altered in any way, contrary to the claims by Stephen Harper that it had been altered.
in Afghanistan
may also influence voters. Desmond Morton, a political science professor at McGill University
suggested that the Conservatives could be blamed for the war because they have extended the mission twice, despite the fact that it was then Liberal Leader Jean Chrétien
who was Canada's prime minister when Canada's current military involvement in Afghanistan first started in 2001. Both the Conservatives and Liberals have at various times agreed to extend the mission(s) to at least 2011, so this may result in some Canadians who are strongly against Canada's ongoing involvement, who might have otherwise typically voted either Liberal or Conservative in the past, to take their votes elsewhere in 2008.
has spoken out that the parties need to focus more on cities and their infrastructure, stating that 8 out of 10 Canadians live in cities, and that so far only the Green party has revealed a platform on the issue, with a national transit strategy and plans to give cities a permanent revenue source to help fix a growing infrastructure backlog. Miller stated he will not endorse a specific party, but urges people to choose a party that will "help cities thrive". He disagrees with Stephen Harper's opinion that "cities are not of national importance".
On September 18, Stéphane Dion pledged to spend more than $70 billion over the next 10 years to improve Canada's infrastructure if elected, and budget surpluses that exceed a $3-billion contingency fund to infrastructure projects, particularly those with a green focus, calling Canada's cities and towns "the engines of our economy". Stephen Harper
immediately lashed out at the spending proposal, saying Dion was "promising money no government could afford" and that the Conservative's infrastructure plans "are modest and affordable within the four-year budget we've published".
On September 23, Montreal
and Toronto mayors Gérald Tremblay
and David Miller laid out their demands for urban municipalities, describing cities' current financial problems as a national issue, saying that cities have become the country's economic, social and cultural development engines and need appropriate support, and that they need better "fiscal tools" to continue their role as Canada's economic engines or the country will suffer. They listed Homelessness
, traffic gridlock
, crowded buses and overstretched police departments as just a few of the symptoms, that "These problems are too big and too important to be solved on the backs of property taxpayers" and that "in order to remain competitive, transport goods efficiently and attract new talent, our cities require quality infrastructure, affordable housing and first-rate recreational and cultural facilities". Jean Perrault
, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities
and mayor of Sherbrooke, Quebec
, has stated that things like the Federal Gas Tax Fund were an important federal commitment, but that more is needed to tackle cities' overwhelming infrastructure needs.
On September 29, Layton announced plans to direct one cent per litre of the gas tax, approximately $400 million a year, into transit projects across the country, and direct $350 million from the sale of carbon permits to big polluters, saying that "the major polluters would be the ones paying to make transit greener, not you and your families", and that "fighting climate change requires investing in transit, and that's what our plan does".
is the major issue going into this election, especially with the resulting high price of gas, along with rising prices of other goods and services, such as food, and the possible impact the current financial crisis may have on Canada. Some experts say that Canada has just narrowly dodged a recession
, although the economy is in its worst shape since 1991.
Both Dion and Harper have said that the others' plans will lead Canada into a recession, while Dion also stated that Harper has "mismanaged a once-booming economy into one with growth dropping to among the lowest of the G8
nations".
The Conservatives have stated possible negative consequences that could happen to the economy based on Liberal election promise
s if they were to be elected. As of September 20, 2008, Liberal election promises have totaled in excess of $80 billion spending over the next decade. In contrast, the cost of programs promised by the Conservatives to date is less than $2 billion annually. Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister, has criticized the Liberal's spending promises, saying they are making "mind-boggling" spending plans that he predicts would send Canada into deficit.
After the rejection of the proposed bailout of the United States financial system and resulting market fluctuation all over the world, including the Toronto Stock Exchange
, Jack Layton called for Harper to call a special meeting for federal party leaders to discuss the potential effects of the U.S economic crisis on Canadians, suggestion the afternoon of October 1, since all leaders would be in Ottawa for the first Leaders' Debate that night. A spokesman for Harper later reported that Harper would not call such a meeting, and to save discussion for the Leader's Debate, as "[they] will have an opportunity later this week to debate — not behind closed doors but in front of all Canadians — the issues at stake not [just] for our economy but for our country". Harper later announced that he would ask for the 12 minutes on the economy scheduled for the Leader's Debate to be extended to an hour, citing that the financial crisis affecting the U.S. "has deepened since the debate format was finalized", a change which would require agreement from the other parties in the debate to be approved. The NDP released a statement soon after that they supported the move, while public response has been concerned that other topics such as the environment would not end up with enough time to cover the issue. All the leaders supported the idea, and the opening and closing statements were dropped and the allotted time for the economy extended to 30 minutes without affecting the other topics.
During the Leaders' Debates Harper repeatedly came under fire for lack of an economic plan in the current time of crisis and while campaigning, and for his lack of ability to explain how he would deal with the current crisis, merely repeating that Canada was unlikely to face such a crisis as he had made "different choices" than the US while in power without being able to explain what those different choices were, as all of his examples were immediately compared to practices done by the Bush administration, and insisted that Canadians "don't panic." In response to mounting pressure from the public, Harper announced on October 3 that he would reveal his party's platform, including economic matters, on October 7, one week before the election.
that included a van and SUV
to travel the 395 m (1,295.9 ft) across the street from the door of 24 Sussex Drive
to the door of Rideau Hall
to dissolve parliament. In return, the Conservatives criticized the Liberal party's decision to use a 29-year-old Boeing 737-200 for campaigning, saying that the older airplane's poor fuel efficiency demonstrates hypocrisy on environmental matters. Daniel Lauzon, a spokesperson for the Liberals, denied their airplane was substantially less efficient than the Conservatives' Airbus A319.
The Tories have been previously criticized for backing out of Canada's commitments under the Kyoto Protocol
. Their new plan requires industries to reduce the rate at which they generate greenhouse gases, with a goal of reducing overall emissions by 45 to 65 percent by 2050. The plan has been criticized by groups such as the Sierra Club
, who called it "completely inadequate". Criticism has focused on the use of "intensity-based" targets, for which emission reductions are relative to overall production, so overall emissions could potentially increase if production also increases. This is in contrast to a "hard cap" on emissions, for which the overall amount cannot increase. The Conservatives' plan includes a hard cap to begin in 2020 or 2025, while environmental groups have advocated for an immediate hard cap.
The Liberals have developed a "Green Shift
" plan, creating a carbon tax
that will be coupled with reductions to income tax
rates. The proposal was to tax greenhouse gas emissions, starting at $10 (Canadian) per ton of CO2 and reaching $40 (Canadian) per ton within four years. The plan would engage in revenue recycling by matching the tax with reductions in the income tax. Criticism of the Green Shift plan has focused on its economic effects, with the Conservatives predicting it would cause a "big recession". When pressed by reporters to provide evidence of this impact, Harper "wasn't able to cite a study that specifically modelled the impact of the Liberal Green Shift plan", instead citing an older economic model about the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol.
One truck
ing association claimed the Liberal carbon tax plan could put up to 10,000 jobs in jeopardy in Moncton alone. Environmental activist David Suzuki
has come out in support of Dion's plan, saying "To oppose [the carbon tax plan], it's just nonsense. It's certainly the way we got to go" and giving an interview explaining why it is the most effective way to solve the environmental crisis.
The NDP's plan for the environment has focused on emissions trading
, claiming their system will decrease greenhouse emissions by 80% by 2050. The plan includes a series of financial incentives to retrofit public transit systems and transition the economy to be "green-collar
". The plan would also halt new tar sands
development until emissions have been capped. Layton has also criticized the Liberal carbon tax plan, stating it taxes families instead of polluters.
, the Progressive Conservative
premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
, launched a campaign called Anything But Conservative
, primarily targeted at Harper and the federal Conservatives. He opposes a Conservative majority, due in part to Harper's promise during the 2006 election to modify the equalization
formula to fully share offshore oil revenues with the province, which Williams says Harper has broken, and what Harper has stated he will do with a majority government. Accordingly, all but one member of the provincial PC caucus supported not voting Conservative in this election.
Leo Power, a veteran of federal politics and the Conservative Party of Canada's campaign co-chair for Newfoundland and Labrador, said raising money and recruiting volunteers has proved difficult, and blames Williams's ABC campaign, saying it has cut deep into the federal election machine that is struggling to compete. Power has also said his party's best hope of winning a seat in the province is in the riding of Avalon
with incumbent candidate Fabian Manning
. Manning was defeated by Liberal Scott Andrews
, while St. John's East
and St. John's South—Mount Pearl
, which were represented by Conservatives not running for re-election, were won by the NDP and Liberals, respectively, leaving the Conservatives with no representatives in Newfoundland and Labrador.
On October 9, Stephen Harper called into question the abilities of Liberal leader Dion after footage from the false starts of an interview on CTV Atlantic
, and later rebroadcast on Mike Duffy Live, were aired to the public, and criticized Dion's grasp of the English language and the strength of the Liberals' plan for the Canadian economy.
The footage shows interviewer Steve Murphy
asking Dion the question: "If you were the Prime Minister now, what would you have done about the economy, and this crisis, that Mr. Harper has not done?". Dion had difficulty in understanding the question, repeatedly asking Murphy to clarify if he meant if Dion was Prime Minister now, next Tuesday on election day, last week, last month, 60 weeks ago, or two and a half years ago. Eventually, after three start overs to the interview, Dion responded with what he would do if elected Prime Minister in the future. CTV initially agreed to re-start the interviews and not air the false starts but changed their minds and announced that they felt it was their responsibility to show it. Harper responded to the clips by saying that "When you're running a trillion-and-a-half-dollar economy you don't get a chance to have do-overs, over and over again" and "What this incident actually indicates very clearly is Mr. Dion and the Liberal Party really don't know what they would do on the economy", and when told that the difficulties were in part due to English being Dion's second language, Harper said "I don't think this is a question of language at all. The question was very clear. It was asked repeatedly."
Mark Dunn
, a spokesman for Dion, accused the Tories of making fun of the Liberal leader's hearing issues. Dion responded to Harper's comments, saying Harper had "no class", saying "I did not understand the question", and "Maybe it's because I have a hearing problem, maybe because [English is] my second language, but I did not understand the question." Both the Conservatives and the CTV have come under criticism for their handling of the footage, but they have stated they stand by their actions. Duceppe has called Harper's comments a "double standard", saying that many English-speaking politicians have little or no ability to speak French, yet francophones are somehow always expected to be perfect, and that the attack was an attempted "low blow". But Duceppe also took the opportunity to criticise Dion, suggesting he understood the question. "The real question is that I think Dion understood the question. The real problem wasn't the language, it was the substance," Duceppe said, "He had nothing to say". Layton also defended Dion, saying he has "struggled with questions, too."
Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
has come out criticizing Harper's leadership abilities, noting especially Harper's controlling ways with his cabinet ministers, saying he would have quit if former prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau had treated him that way, that "Mr. Dion was a minister for nine years. And Mr. Harper arrived there with no experience and it shows", that the phrase 'Tory times are bad times', in use since the 1930s, was still true and that "Harper destroyed 50 years of relationships with China", Canada's second biggest trading partner after the US, noting both past Liberal and Progressive Conservative governments sought to maintain its dealings with the key trading partner. Former Prime Minister Paul Martin
has also supported Dion's plans and abilities, and many have noted Dion's ability to get both Chrétien and Martin to support him, despite Chrétien and Martin's ongoing feud.
Gerry Ritz
, who has already been criticized by Canada's food scientists for his handling of the 2008 listeriosis outbreak
, has also been criticized for making inappropriate comments, further angering the families of those affected. Ritz had joked about the outbreak while he was on a conference call with scientists and political staffers on August 30, saying the political fallout from the outbreak was "like a death by a thousand cuts, or should I say cold cuts". In addition, when he was informed of a listeriosis-related death in Prince Edward Island
, he quipped "Please tell me it's [Liberal agriculture critic] Wayne Easter
." Despite calls for Ritz's resignation from the other parties and the public, Stephen Harper has supported Ritz and rebuffed calls for his resignation.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada
revealed to the media that the Conservative party plans to cut federal funding to meat inspection programs by $3 million, effectively ending their operation in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.
of the Liberal Party that on March 20, 2003, Stephen Harper had plagiarized
a speech that called for troops to be deployed to Iraq to assist the US invasion
from Australian Prime Minister John Howard
, which Howard had delivered two days before, on March 18.
Following Rae's statement, Harper's spokesman Kory Teneycke
dismissed the issue as irrelevant, saying "I'm not going to get into a debate about a five-year-old speech that was delivered three Parliaments ago, two elections ago, when the prime minister was the leader of a party that no longer exists".
The Canadian Alliance staff member and former Fraser Institute
policy analyst, Owen Lippert, who wrote that speech was working on the current election campaign at Conservative campaign headquarters. On September 30, 2008 he issued a statement and resigned as a result of the incident.
He stated:
On October 3, there was a second plagiarism allegation from the Liberals, who said that Harper had copied several sentences from a speech by former Ontario premier Mike Harris
. Harper denied the allegation, saying "we're talking about a couple of sentences of fairly standard political rhetoric".
On October 6, the Conservatives contended that Dion had also committed plagiarism when, as Minister of the Environment in 2005, he went to a United Nations
conference on climate change to deliver a speech which had substantial similarities to the executive summary of a year old UN report. The Liberal party did not respond to the plagiarism allegation.
Chris Reid, the Conservative candidate from Toronto Centre
, resigned over controversial statements on his blog, which advocated revising Canadian gun control
legislation to legalize concealed carriage
of handguns. He was replaced by David Gentili.
The Conservatives apologized after an aide to Pontiac
candidate Lawrence Cannon
told Aboriginal
protesters that they were free to meet with Cannon "if you behave and you're sober and there's no problems and if you don't do a sit down and whatever."
Liberal candidate Simon Bédard was also asked to resign after he reiterated his 1990 comments, suggesting that lethal force should have been used in the Oka Crisis
.
Liberal candidate Lesley Hughes was dropped by the Liberal Party after making controversial comments about the September 11, 2001 attacks
. She continued to campaign as an independent, though she appeared as a Liberal on the ballot.
Andrew McKeever, an NDP candidate in Durham
, announced on October 3 that he would resign from the election campaign after it was revealed that he had posted comments on Facebook
in which he called one war activist a “fascist bitch” and threatened to beat up another person. Mr. McKeever wrote comments peppered with expletives and calling the operators of a war resister website “Nazis.” McKeever was also quoted as saying “I like the part in Schindler’s List when the guard starts waxing the prisoners.” McKeever’s decision to drop out of the race came with just over a week left in the campaign, meaning his name would remain on the ballot. One week before the publication of McKeever's resignation, NDP leader Jack Layton defended McKeever and refused to make him step down.
Julian West
, the candidate for the riding of Saanich—Gulf Islands
, dropped out of the race after details surfaced about an environmental event he attended 12 years ago when he went skinny-dipping and asked two teenagers to body-paint him. Two other candidates in British Columbia who were proponents of marijuana decriminalization — Dana Larsen
and Kirk Tousaw — resigned earlier after videos they had produced for Internet site Pot-TV were released to the media. One of the videos, filmed in 2000, showed Mr. Larsen, former leader of the BC Marijuana Party, preparing to light up a joint before driving a car, after having taken the short-acting hallucinogenic drug DMT earlier in the evening.
John Shavluk, the Green candidate in Newton—North Delta
, was removed from the party's slate of candidates on September 4, just before the election call, after it was revealed that he had previously published comments in his blog about the September 11 attacks in 2001, in which he referred to the World Trade Center
as "the shoddily built Jewish world bank headquarters". He was replaced by Liz Walker as the Green Party candidate, but remained on the ballot as an independent.
At an all-candidates debate staged for a high school student audience in Sudbury
on September 29, independent candidate David Popescu responded to a question about same-sex marriage by stating that "homosexuals should be executed". His remarks were widely criticized across Canada, and the Greater Sudbury Police Service
announced an investigation into whether the comments constituted a crime under Canadian hate speech
legislation. He was subsequently investigated by the Toronto Police as well, after a radio interview on October 2 in which he specifically advocated the execution of Egale Canada
executive director Helen Kennedy
.
(St. Paul's
) and Gerard Kennedy
(Parkdale—High Park
) who had Liberal signs outside their houses were subject to vandalism
during the later hours of October 3, including graffiti, phone and cable lines being cut, and damage to vehicles that included brake cutting. Toronto police reported over 30 incidents of vandalism as of October 6. Some of the victims did not realize their brakes had been cut until they were in traffic, and there was at least one near-accident. Liberal Senator Jerry Grafstein
was one of the residents who reported vandalism to his car.
Vandalism was also reported at the campaign offices of Trinity—Spadina Liberal candidate Christine Innes and Beaches—East York New Democratic Party
candidate Marilyn Churley, as well as in Niagara Falls.
, an Ottawa-based advocacy group, filed a legal suit claiming that the election call was illegal because it violated the 2007 amendments to the Canada Elections Act
. These amendments, introduced by the Harper government, set fixed dates for elections, and fulfilled a 2006 promise made by Harper to end the Prime Minister's ability to call snap elections.
On September 17, 2009, the Federal Court of Canada
ruled that the election was not unfair, and therefore not illegal. Democracy Watch's appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal was also dismissed, and the Supreme Court denied leave to hear a further appeal.
These ridings were targeted by the specified party because the party had lost them by a very slim margin in the 2006 election.
Up to 15 are shown, with a maximum margin of victory of 15%.
* Indicates incumbent not running again. To clarify further; this is a list of federal election winners with their party in parentheses, and their margin as a percentage of the vote over the party whose list the seat is on (not the same as the margin of victory if the party potentially "targeting" the seat in that list did not finish second in the previous election). "Won" means that the targeting party won the seat from the incumbent party. "Held" means the incumbent party held the seat.
for the purpose of forming a coalition government
. Combined, the three opposition parties constitute a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Parliament was due to vote on a no-confidence motion on December 8; if successful, the Liberals and NDP would have formally formed the coalition for 30 months, while the BQ pledged to support it for at least 18 months. Liberal leader Stéphane Dion would have become prime minister until the selection of his successor at the Liberal leadership convention in May 2009, and a coalition cabinet
would have comprised 18 Liberal members (including a finance minister) and 6 NDP members. Governor General Michaëlle Jean
had cut short a state visit
to Europe
"in light of the current political situation in Canada."
On December 4, 2008, Jean granted Harper's request to prorogue
Parliament until January 26, 2009, thereby staving off the prospect of an imminent change in government.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
of the 40th Canadian Parliament
40th Canadian Parliament
The 40th Canadian Parliament was in session from November 18, 2008 to March 26, 2011, and was the last Parliament of the longest-running minority government in Canadian history that began with the previous Parliament. The membership of its House of Commons was determined by the results of the 2008...
after the previous parliament
39th Canadian Parliament
The 39th Canadian Parliament was in session from April 3, 2006 until September 7, 2008. The membership was set by the 2006 federal election on January 23, 2006, and it has changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections...
had been dissolved by the Governor General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
on September 7, 2008. The election yielded a minority government
Minority government
A minority government or a minority cabinet is a cabinet of a parliamentary system formed when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the parliament but is sworn into government to break a Hung Parliament election result. It is also known as a...
under the Conservative Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
, led by the incumbent Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
, Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
.
The election call resulted in the cancellation of four federal by-elections that had been scheduled to occur in September.
Background
Opposition (parliamentary)
Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. Note that this article uses the term government as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning the administration or the cabinet rather than the state...
bring down the government on a vote of confidence. In this election there was no loss of a non-confidence vote, but the Prime Minister asked the Governor General to call an election. The Governor General granted the Prime Minister's request.
2006 election
64.7% of all eligible voters cast ballots in the 2006 federal electionCanadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
. The Conservative Party
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
received the most votes of any single party, with 36% of the vote and 124 seats (127 at dissolution). The Liberal Party won fewer seats than in 2006 — 103 seats (96 at dissolution), and 30% of the vote. The Bloc Québécois lost three seats, lowering its total to 51 seats (48 at dissolution), with 10.5% of the vote. The NDP retained its seats held at the dissolution of Parliament
Dissolution of parliament
In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...
, and won 11 more, making its total 29 seats (30 at dissolution), with 17.5% of the vote. The Green Party
Green Party of Canada
The Green Party of Canada is a Canadian federal political party founded in 1983 with 10,000–12,000 registered members as of October 2008. The Greens advance a broad multi-issue political platform that reflects its core values of ecological wisdom, social justice, grassroots democracy and...
received 4.5% of the vote, a minimal increase from the previous election, but did not win any seats (1 at dissolution). Independents
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
and other parties constituted 1% of the total vote with one independent winning a seat.
Events since the 2006 election
Since the 2006 election, seven Members of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MPs) have changed party: David Emerson
David Emerson
David Lee Emerson, PC, OBC is a Canadian politician, businessman and civil servant.Emerson is a former Member of Parliament for the riding of Vancouver Kingsway. He was first elected as a Liberal and served as Minister of Industry under Prime Minister Paul Martin...
, Wajid Khan
Wajid Khan
Wajid Ali Khan is a Canadian businessman and politician. Until 2008, he was a member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Mississauga—Streetsville as a Conservative Member of Parliament.-Early life:Khan served as an officer and a pilot in the Pakistan Air Force from 1966 to...
and Joe Comuzzi
Joe Comuzzi
Joseph Robert "Joe" Comuzzi, PC is a former Canadian politician.Comuzzi was born in Fort William, Ontario. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Windsor in 1954. In 1966, Comuzzi received the University of Windsor Alumni Award of Merit, the Alumni Association's most...
from Liberal to Conservative; Garth Turner
Garth Turner
John Garth Turner, PC is a Canadian business journalist, best-selling author, entrepreneur, broadcaster, financial advisor and politician, twice elected as a Member of the House of Commons, former Minister of National Revenue and leadership candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada...
from Conservative to Independent to Liberal; Blair Wilson
Blair Wilson
Blair Wilson was the Canadian Member of Parliament in the 39th Canadian parliament for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country electoral district. He was elected on January 23, 2006 in the 2006 federal election as the Liberal candidate...
from Liberal to Independent to Green; Louise Thibault
Louise Thibault
Louise Thibault is a Canadian politician. Briefly a city councillor in Bic in 2003, she was elected into the Canadian House of Commons in the Canadian federal election, 2004 for the Bloc Québécois in the riding of Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques...
from Bloc Québécois to Independent; and Bill Casey
Bill Casey
William D. "Bill" Casey is a Canadian politician. He is a former Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons.-Life and career:...
from Conservative to Independent. In by-elections, the NDP gained one seat from the Liberal Party, while the Conservative Party gained two seats, one from the Liberals and one from the Bloc Québécois. Four seats were vacant when the election was called: three previously held by the Liberal Party, one by the Bloc Québécois.
The parliament preceding this election
39th Canadian Parliament
The 39th Canadian Parliament was in session from April 3, 2006 until September 7, 2008. The membership was set by the 2006 federal election on January 23, 2006, and it has changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections...
was led by the Conservatives, who governed with the smallest minority ever in the Canadian House of Commons, just 40.6% of the seats. Although the average length of a minority parliament
Hung parliament
In a two-party parliamentary system of government, a hung parliament occurs when neither major political party has an absolute majority of seats in the parliament . It is also less commonly known as a balanced parliament or a legislature under no overall control...
in Canada is 1 year, 5 months, and 22 days, minorities led by the former Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
have been much shorter: the longest previous Conservative minority was just 6 months and 19 days. The 39th Parliament became Canada's longest serving Conservative minority on October 24, 2006.
On May 30, 2006, the Conservatives tabled Bill C-16, which would amend the Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act is an Act of the Parliament of Canada respecting the election of members of parliament to the Canadian House of Commons, repealing other Acts relating to elections and making consequential amendments to other Acts....
to provide fixed election dates. The bill received royal assent on May 3, 2007. The bill states that there will be an election in 2009, and it would be the first to have a fixed election date, the third Monday in October (October 19, 2009). Despite the bill, on September 7, 2008, the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
sought the dissolution of the 39th Parliament, and the Governor General agreed to hold a general election on October 14, 2008.
On February 15, 2007, The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
reported that the Conservatives were preparing for an election expected to be called shortly after the 2007 budget, due on March 19, 2007. Part of the reason for the timing of the election was given as strengthening Conservative poll numbers coupled with the desire to take advantage of the perception that Harper has "better leadership qualities than Liberal counterpart Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Maurice Dion, PC, MP is a Canadian politician who has been the Member of Parliament for the riding of Saint-Laurent–Cartierville in Montreal since 1996. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and the Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008...
".
On March 17, 2007, an internal Conservative Party memo was leaked to The Canadian Press, telling members that they "need to be ready to campaign within the next week". The memo asked members to donate $75 to $150 to help to fund the early stages of the election campaign. None of these predictions for a federal election to occur in 2007 proved true, but the majority of pundits still believed a federal election would be triggered before the fixed election date of October 19, 2009, for sometime in 2008.
Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
hinted at the possibility of dissolving parliament on August 14, 2008. Speaking in Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
, he cited Stéphane Dion as the main player in making Parliament become increasingly "dysfunctional". "I’m going to have to make a judgment in the next little while as to whether or not this Parliament can function productively," Harper said. This came after repeated confidence votes
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
that resulted in the NDP and Bloc parties not voting in favour of the government, and the Liberal Party voting in favour or not attending the vote. Rumours of a possible fall election were further fuelled by Harper's announcement of a fourth federal by-election for September 22 in the Toronto riding of Don Valley West
Don Valley West
Don Valley West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979. Its population in 2001 was 115,539....
.
On August 27, 2008. Harper asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
to cancel her trip to the Paralympic Games in Beijing
2008 Summer Paralympics
The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games, the thirteenth Paralympics, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to September 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao....
, adding fuel to speculation that the Prime Minister would seek a dissolution. On September 7, 2008 after much speculation, Harper asked the Governor General to call a federal election on October 14, 2008
Results
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Vote and seat summaries
Results by province
| Party name | BC British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858... |
AB Alberta Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces... |
SK Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota.... |
MB Manitoba Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other... |
ON Ontario Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa.... |
QC Quebec Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level.... |
NB New Brunswick New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area... |
NS Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the... |
PE Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population... |
NL Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400... |
NU Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993... |
NT Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south... |
YT Yukon Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in.... |
Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
Seats: | 22 | 27 | 13 | 9 | 51 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 143 |
Vote: | 44.4 | 64.6 | 53.7 | 48.8 | 39.2 | 21.7 | 39.4 | 26.1 | 36.2 | 16.5 | 34.8 | 37.6 | 32.8 | 37.6 |
Liberal Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
Seats: | 5 | - | 1 | 1 | 38 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 6 | - | - | 1 | 77 |
Vote: | 19.3 | 11.4 | 14.9 | 19.1 | 33.8 | 23.7 | 32.4 | 29.8 | 47.7 | 46.6 | 29.2 | 13.6 | 45.3 | 26.2 |
Bloc Québécois Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative... |
Seats: | 49 | 49 |
Vote: | 38.1 | 10.0 |
New Democrat New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in... |
Seats: | 9 | 1 | - | 4 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | 37 |
Vote: | 25.0 | 12.7 | 25.6 | 24.0 | 18.2 | 12.2 | 21.9 | 28.9 | 9.8 | 33.9 | 27.6 | 41.5 | 9.0 | 18.2 |
Green Green Party of Canada The Green Party of Canada is a Canadian federal political party founded in 1983 with 10,000–12,000 registered members as of October 2008. The Greens advance a broad multi-issue political platform that reflects its core values of ecological wisdom, social justice, grassroots democracy and... |
Vote: | 9.4 | 8.8 | 5.6 | 6.8 | 8.0 | 3.5 | 6.2 | 8.0 | 4.7 | 1.7 | 8.4 | 5.5 | 13.0 | 6.8 |
| Independent / No affiliation | Seats: | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Vote: | 0.6 | 6.6 | 0.7 |
Total seats: | 36 | 28 | 14 | 14 | 106 | 75 | 10 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 308 |
Missing ballot boxes
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, several ballot boxes containing votes from advanced polls disappeared after the close of advance polling on October 7. The boxes were stored in a closet at the home of a deputy returning officer. Although there was no tampering of the boxes or the votes, three deputy returning officers were fired. Deputy returning officers are the only polling officials allowed to handle ballots during the vote count and the law did allow for them to store the sealed boxes as may be necessary in large remote rural ridings. However the boxes were returned a day late after the riding returning officer ordered their return.
Strategic voting
A number of political leaders and popular websites supported strategic voting in the election, mostly against the Conservative Party. The reasons varied from regional, such as Newfoundland and LabradorNewfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
premier Danny Williams
Danny Williams (politician)
Daniel E. "Danny" Williams, QC, MHA is a Canadian politician, businessman and lawyer who served as the ninth Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador between November 6, 2003, and December 3, 2010. Williams was born and raised in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador...
and his "Anything But Conservative
Anything But Conservative
Anything But Conservative , also known as the ABC campaign, was a political campaign in the 2008 Canadian federal election encouraging voters to support any party other than the federal Conservative Party...
" campaign, to ideological. The popular website VoteForEnvironment.ca, which received over one million page views in the first 12 days of its existence and whose founders were interviewed on CBC and other mainstream media, showed regional breakdowns per riding and offered recommendations based on which candidate was most likely to beat the Conservative candidate. If the Conservative candidate had little chance of winning the riding or was strongly entrenched, the site recommended "vote with your heart." Similarly, a vote swapping organization on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
entitled "Anti-Harper Vote Swap Canada" also gained press. The premise of that organization is that eligible voters in different electoral districts may exchange their votes, so that an opponent of a Conservative candidate in each district might have a better chance of being elected in that district. Elections Canada deemed the practice legal.
Green Party leader Elizabeth May sent out mixed signals about strategic voting. On October 12, she recommended that in close ridings, supporters of green policies should consider voting for the NDP or Liberals to defeat the Conservatives, but on the same day she said "I do not support strategic voting and I have not advised voters to choose any candidate other than Green." In addition, during the final days of the campaign the Liberals attempted to attract strategic NDP and Green votes to stop the Conservatives, and the Conservatives attempted to attract Bloc votes to stop the Liberals.
Voter identification
Some students, homeless, and transient voters were turned away at the polls when they were unable to provide identification showing or otherwise confirming a place of residence. The legislation introduced in 2007 requires all voters to show one or two pieces of identification which confirm the voter's name and address, or to be vouched for by another voter who is able to show such identification.| Region | Turnout (%) |
|---|---|
| Alberta Alberta Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces... |
52.9 |
| British Columbia British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858... |
61.0 |
| Manitoba Manitoba Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other... |
56.8 |
| New Brunswick New Brunswick New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area... |
62.8 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400... |
48.1 |
| Northwest Territories Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south... |
48.6 |
| Nova Scotia Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the... |
60.7 |
| Nunavut Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993... |
49.4 |
| Ontario Ontario Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa.... |
59.1 |
| Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population... |
69.5 |
| Saskatchewan Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota.... |
59.4 |
| Quebec Quebec Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level.... |
61.1 |
| Yukon Yukon Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in.... |
63.7 |
Voter turnout
Voter turnoutVoter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
was the lowest in Canadian election history, as 59.1% of the electorate
Electorate
Electorate may refer to:* voters, people entitled to vote in an election* electoral district or constituency, the geographic area of a particular election* The dominion of a Prince-elector in the Holy Roman Empire...
cast a ballot. All federally funded parties except for the Greens attracted fewer total votes than in 2006; the Greens received nearly 280,000 more votes. The Conservatives lost about 170,000 votes, the Liberals 850,000, the Bloc 170,000 and the NDP 70,000. Some voters were at first turned away because of failure to meet new and stricter proof of address requirements, including 2/3 of those attempting to vote at Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University is a public research university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university comprises eleven faculties including Schulich School of Law and Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. It also includes the faculties of architecture, planning and engineering located at...
, for example. The effect this may have had on voter turnout is unknown.
Judicial recounts
In a federal election, a judicial recount is automatically ordered in a riding where the margin of victory is less than 0.1% (one one-thousandth) of the votes cast. In cases where there is a larger but still narrow margin of victory, an elector can request a judicial recount.Judicial recounts were ordered in six ridings. In one case, Brossard—La Prairie
Brossard—La Prairie
Brossard—La Prairie is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2006 was 113,985.-Geography:...
, the judicial recount overturned the reported victor, giving the seat to the Liberals' Alexandra Mendès
Alexandra Mendès
Alexandra Mendès is a Canadian politician. She was elected in the 2008 election as the federal Liberal MP for the Montreal riding of Brossard—La Prairie, defeating Marcel Lussier...
instead of the Bloc incumbent Marcel Lussier
Marcel Lussier
Marcel Lussier is a Canadian politician and the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Brossard—La Prairie. He ran for office as a member of the Bloc Québécois in the 2004 election, but was defeated by Jacques Saada. In the 2006 election he ran again, defeating Saada by approximately two...
.
In four other ridings, the recount confirmed the election results, although Liberal Ujjal Dosanjh
Ujjal Dosanjh
Ujjal Dev Singh Dosanjh, PC, QC, is a Sikh Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as 33rd Premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2011 including a stint as Minister of Health from 2004 until 2006 when the party lost...
's margin in Vancouver South was reduced from 33 votes to just 20. This was the slimmest victory of any riding in the entire election, until the results of the Kitchener-Waterloo recount reduced Peter Braid's margin of victory to a mere 17 votes. Dosanjh's Conservative opponent, Wai Young, appealed the recount to the Supreme Court of British Columbia
Supreme Court of British Columbia
The Supreme Court of British Columbia is the superior trial court for the province of British Columbia. The BCSC hears civil and criminal law cases as well as appeals from the Provincial Court of British Columbia. Including supernumerary judges, there are presently 108 judges...
, citing that not all of the ballot boxes were fully recounted. All ballots were eventually counted by November 4, confirming Dosanjh's victory by 20 votes, after the initial partial recount indicated a margin of 22 votes.
In a sixth riding, the recount was cancelled when the elector who had requested it withdrew the request.
| Riding | Initial validated results - First and second place | Recount type | Recount date | Judicially certified results - First and second place | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| Egmont Egmont (electoral district) Egmont is a federal electoral district in Prince Edward Island, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. Its population in 2001 was 35,208.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 98.0% White, 1.4% Native Canadian... , PEI |
Gail Shea Gail Shea Gail Shea, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, currently the Member of Parliament for Egmont. She was previously a member of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 2000 to 2007, representing the electoral district of Tignish-DeBlois as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party.As... , Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
8,122 | 44.0% | Requested | October 23, 2008 | Gail Shea Gail Shea Gail Shea, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, currently the Member of Parliament for Egmont. She was previously a member of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 2000 to 2007, representing the electoral district of Tignish-DeBlois as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party.As... , Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
8,110 | 43.9% | ||
| Keith Milligan Keith Milligan Keith Milligan was the 29th Premier of Prince Edward Island, serving for two months in the autumn of 1996. He was educated at Inverness District School, O'Leary Regional High School and the University of PEI, where he obtained Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education degrees. He is married to... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
8,060 | 43.6% | Keith Milligan Keith Milligan Keith Milligan was the 29th Premier of Prince Edward Island, serving for two months in the autumn of 1996. He was educated at Inverness District School, O'Leary Regional High School and the University of PEI, where he obtained Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education degrees. He is married to... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
8,055 | 43.6% | |||||
| Brossard—La Prairie Brossard—La Prairie Brossard—La Prairie is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2006 was 113,985.-Geography:... , QC |
Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier is a Canadian politician and the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Brossard—La Prairie. He ran for office as a member of the Bloc Québécois in the 2004 election, but was defeated by Jacques Saada. In the 2006 election he ran again, defeating Saada by approximately two... , BQ Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative... |
19,202 | 32.6% | Requested | October 24, 2008 | Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès is a Canadian politician. She was elected in the 2008 election as the federal Liberal MP for the Montreal riding of Brossard—La Prairie, defeating Marcel Lussier... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
19,103 | 32.6% | ||
| Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès is a Canadian politician. She was elected in the 2008 election as the federal Liberal MP for the Montreal riding of Brossard—La Prairie, defeating Marcel Lussier... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
19,110 | 32.4% | Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier is a Canadian politician and the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Brossard—La Prairie. He ran for office as a member of the Bloc Québécois in the 2004 election, but was defeated by Jacques Saada. In the 2006 election he ran again, defeating Saada by approximately two... , BQ Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative... |
19,034 | 32.5% | |||||
| Brampton West Brampton West Brampton West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population was 170,422 in 2006- making it the most populous riding in Canada.... , ON |
Andrew Kania Andrew Kania Andrew Kania was a Canadian Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Brampton West, in Ontario. Kania was elected in the 2008 Canadian federal election, winning as the Liberal Party candidate in the riding vacated by Liberal Colleen Beaumier.Kania was a member of the Standing Committee... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
21,739 | 40.3% | Requested | November 6, 2008 | Andrew Kania Andrew Kania Andrew Kania was a Canadian Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Brampton West, in Ontario. Kania was elected in the 2008 Canadian federal election, winning as the Liberal Party candidate in the riding vacated by Liberal Colleen Beaumier.Kania was a member of the Standing Committee... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
21,746 | 40.3% | ||
| Kyle Seeback, Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
21,516 | 39.9% | Kyle Seeback, Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
21,515 | 39.9% | |||||
| Kitchener—Waterloo, ON | Peter Braid Peter Braid Peter Braid is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the electoral district of Kitchener—Waterloo in the 2008 Canadian federal election, defeating incumbent Andrew Telegdi by a margin of 17 votes. He is a member of the Conservative Party... , Cons. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
21,851 | 36.1% | Automatic | October 31, 2008 | Peter Braid Peter Braid Peter Braid is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the electoral district of Kitchener—Waterloo in the 2008 Canadian federal election, defeating incumbent Andrew Telegdi by a margin of 17 votes. He is a member of the Conservative Party... , Cons. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
21,830 | 36.1% | ||
| Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi, PC is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2008, representing Waterloo and the successor riding of Kitchener—Waterloo.... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
21,803 | 36.0% | Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi, PC is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2008, representing Waterloo and the successor riding of Kitchener—Waterloo.... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
21,813 | 36.0% | |||||
| Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.-Demographics:-Geography:It initially consisted of:... , BC |
Keith Martin, Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
20,042 | 34.2% | Requested | Judicial recount terminated at the request of the elector who had requested it | |||||
| Troy DeSouza, Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
19,974 | 34.1% | ||||||||
| Vancouver South Vancouver South Vancouver South is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1997, and since 2004. It covers the southern portion of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia.... , BC |
Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dev Singh Dosanjh, PC, QC, is a Sikh Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as 33rd Premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2011 including a stint as Minister of Health from 2004 until 2006 when the party lost... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
16,101 | 38.5% | Automatic | November 4, 2008 | Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dev Singh Dosanjh, PC, QC, is a Sikh Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as 33rd Premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2011 including a stint as Minister of Health from 2004 until 2006 when the party lost... , Lib. Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
16,110 | 38.5% | ||
| Wai Young Wai Young Wai Young is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 2011 election. She represents the electoral district of Vancouver South as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada.-Early life:... , Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
16,068 | 38.4% | Wai Young Wai Young Wai Young is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 2011 election. She represents the electoral district of Vancouver South as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada.-Early life:... , Con. Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
16,090 | 38.4% | |||||
Timeline
- February 6, 2006: Harper CabinetCabinet of CanadaThe Cabinet of Canada is a body of ministers of the Crown that, along with the Canadian monarch, and within the tenets of the Westminster system, forms the government of Canada...
is sworn in. - May 3, 2007: Bill C-16 receives Royal AssentRoyal AssentThe granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
. This bill states that the next election must be held on October 19, 2009, unless there is an earlier dissolution. - August 26, 2008: Harper indicates he may call an election for the fall of 2008; Parliament could be dissolved as early as the week of September 1–6.
- August 29, 2008: Harper meets with Gilles Duceppe, the leader of the Bloc Québécois in an attempt to find common ground between the Bloc and the Conservatives.
- August 30, 2008:
- Former Liberal MP Blair WilsonBlair WilsonBlair Wilson was the Canadian Member of Parliament in the 39th Canadian parliament for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country electoral district. He was elected on January 23, 2006 in the 2006 federal election as the Liberal candidate...
joins the Green Party after being an Independent for nearly a year in the riding of West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky CountryWest Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky CountryWest Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:...
in British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Wilson becomes the first Member of Parliament for the Green Party. - Harper meets with Jack LaytonJack LaytonJohn Gilbert "Jack" Layton, PC was a Canadian social democratic politician and the Leader of the Official Opposition. He was the leader of the New Democratic Party from 2003 to 2011, and previously sat on Toronto City Council, serving at times during that period as acting mayor and deputy mayor of...
, the leader of the New Democrats in an attempt to find common ground between the NDP and the Conservatives.
- Former Liberal MP Blair Wilson
- September 1, 2008: Harper meets with Stéphane Dion, the leader of the Liberals, in an attempt to find common ground between the Liberals and the Conservatives, and avert the dissolution of Parliament, allowing the fall session to continue as planned. However, after a twenty-minute meeting at 24 Sussex Drive24 Sussex Drive24 Sussex Drive is the official residence of the Prime Minister of Canada, located in the New Edinburgh neighbourhood of Ottawa, Ontario. Built between 1866 and 1868 by Joseph Merrill Currier, it has been the official home of the Canadian prime minister since 1951.-History:The house at 24 Sussex...
, the PM's official residence, Dion emerges stating there is no common ground between the two parties, and that an election is certain. - September 5, 2008: The Prime Minister's OfficeOffice of the Prime Minister (Canada)In Canada, the Office of the Prime Minister , located in the Langevin Block, on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, is one of the most powerful parts of the government. It is made up of the prime minister and his or her top political staff, who are charged with advising the prime minister on decisions,...
(PMO) announces that Prime Minister Stephen Harper will visit the Governor General at 9 am on September 7, 2008 to ask for the dissolution of the 39th Parliament and a general election on October 14, 2008. - September 7, 2008: Prime Minister Harper asks Governor General Michaëlle Jean to call a general election on October 14, 2008. She accepts the request.
- October 14, 2008: Elections held for members of the House of Commons in the 40th Canadian Parliament40th Canadian ParliamentThe 40th Canadian Parliament was in session from November 18, 2008 to March 26, 2011, and was the last Parliament of the longest-running minority government in Canadian history that began with the previous Parliament. The membership of its House of Commons was determined by the results of the 2008...
. - November 4, 2008: Writs to be returned to the Chief Election Officer.
- November 10, 2008: 40th Parliament summoned.
- December 1, 2008: The Liberals and NDP sign agreement on proposed coalition government to replace the governing Conservatives under Prime Minister Harper.
- December 1, 2008: The Liberals, NDP, and Bloc Québécois sign "policy accord" whereby the Bloc would support a Liberal/NDP government for at least 18 months.
- December 4, 2008: Parliament prorogued by the Governor General during the parliamentary dispute on advice of the Prime Minister.
- January 26, 2009: Parliament to reconvene for second session.
Pre-election
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was considering calling an election because of a lack of cooperation in Parliament, saying "all the signs indicate that this Parliament is at the end of its productiveness," while in InuvikInuvik, Northwest Territories
Inuvik is a town in the Northwest Territories of Canada and is the administrative centre for the Inuvik Region.The population as of the 2006 Census was 3,484, but the two previous census counts show wide fluctuations due to economic conditions: 2,894 in 2001 and 3,296 in 1996...
, Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
. The Conservative Party of Canada fueled rumours of an oncoming election when it released several campaign advertisements
Campaign advertising
'In politics, campaign advertising is the use of an advertising campaign through newspapers, radio commercials, television commercials, etc.) to influence the decisions made for and by groups. These ads are designed by political consultants and the political campaign staff...
that focused on a range of issues, and attacked the Liberal Party of Canada for their proposed carbon tax
Carbon tax
A carbon tax is an environmental tax levied on the carbon content of fuels. It is a form of carbon pricing. Carbon is present in every hydrocarbon fuel and is released as carbon dioxide when they are burnt. In contrast, non-combustion energy sources—wind, sunlight, hydropower, and nuclear—do not...
. The Prime Minister's Office
Office of the Prime Minister (Canada)
In Canada, the Office of the Prime Minister , located in the Langevin Block, on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, is one of the most powerful parts of the government. It is made up of the prime minister and his or her top political staff, who are charged with advising the prime minister on decisions,...
(PMO) confirmed that Harper would call an election for October 14 after meeting with New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton
Jack Layton
John Gilbert "Jack" Layton, PC was a Canadian social democratic politician and the Leader of the Official Opposition. He was the leader of the New Democratic Party from 2003 to 2011, and previously sat on Toronto City Council, serving at times during that period as acting mayor and deputy mayor of...
and Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe is a Canadian politician, and proponent of the Québec sovereignty movement. He was a Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons for over 20 years and was the leader of the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois for almost 15 years. He is the son of a well-known Quebec actor, Jean...
, which gave the Prime Minister little hope that a fall session of Parliament can be productive, PMO officials said. Senior government officials announced on the first of September that Stephen Harper would ask the Governor General, Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
, to dissolve parliament and call an election for October 14, after he met with Liberal leader Stéphane Dion who called the meeting a "charade". Dion said the two were unable to agree on how to make the upcoming session of Parliament, slated to begin September 15, more productive.
Liberal Party members gathered in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
on September 2, for a three day caucus which changed from preparing for a new parliamentary session to a strategy session to formulate a plan to attack the Conservatives while healing internal party rifts that have surfaced in recent weeks. Conservatives began spending at least $60 million dollars on pre-election funding projects to a wide variety of institutions and groups. A few announcements have been big, including Industry Minister
Minister of Industry (Canada)
The Minister of Industry is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing the federal government's economic development and corporate affairs department, Industry Canada. The Minister of Industry is also the minister responsible for Statistics Canada...
Jim Prentice
Jim Prentice
James "Jim" Prentice, PC, QC is a Canadian lawyer, and politician. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons as a candidate of the Conservative Party of Canada...
's pledge of $25 million for the expansion of the Northlands
Northlands
Northlands is a non-profit, volunteer organization in Edmonton, Alberta. It was founded in 1879, before the official incorporation of the city of Edmonton, or the province of Alberta....
exhibition facility in Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
. But the Tories have also announced a number of smaller projects, including $40,000 for the 2008 55+ Games and $25,000 for the Peace Window of the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Winnipeg. The announcements have also been spread out across the country. The Atlantic region is to get more than $500,000 for youth jobs and eight cultural organizations. The Association of Book Publishers of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
will receive $81,000. Jack Layton attacked the Conservative Party as bribing the public and doing the same thing they used to complain about the Liberals doing before elections.
A survey conducted by Environics found that 38 per cent of Canadians would vote for the Conservative party if an election were held immediately, 28 per cent would vote for the Liberal party, 19 for the NDP, eight for the Bloc Québécois and seven for the Green party. The poll shows Conservatives taking early leads in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, British Columbia and the Prairies
Canadian Prairies
The Canadian Prairies is a region of Canada, specifically in western Canada, which may correspond to several different definitions, natural or political. Notably, the Prairie provinces or simply the Prairies comprise the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, as they are largely covered...
. In Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada is the region of Canada comprising the four provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec: the three Maritime provinces – New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia – and Newfoundland and Labrador...
, Liberals still hold a strong majority, while in Quebec the Bloc Québécois leads while the Conservatives and Liberals are almost tied for second. When asked, most Canadians said the Conservatives would handle the economy better, while most said the Liberals would handle the environment better.
On September 7, Harper officially asked for the dissolution of Parliament, and called for an election on October 14.
Election campaign
The 40th Canadian Federal Election campaign officially began at 8:20 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time when Governor General Michaëlle Jean accepted Stephen Harper's request to dissolve Parliament and call an election for October 14, 2008. The party leaders jumped right into the campaign, with Stéphane DionStéphane Dion
Stéphane Maurice Dion, PC, MP is a Canadian politician who has been the Member of Parliament for the riding of Saint-Laurent–Cartierville in Montreal since 1996. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and the Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008...
attacking the Conservative's record, presenting the Liberal plan, and rejected the accusation by Harper that the Liberal party is a risky choice. Jack Layton
Jack Layton
John Gilbert "Jack" Layton, PC was a Canadian social democratic politician and the Leader of the Official Opposition. He was the leader of the New Democratic Party from 2003 to 2011, and previously sat on Toronto City Council, serving at times during that period as acting mayor and deputy mayor of...
took a more forceful approach than previous elections, in which the New Democratic Party has just tried to maintain a high number of seats in Parliament to influence government. Layton has made it clear he will campaign for the position of prime minister itself this time, but also returned to a longstanding NDP theme: alleged abuses by big business. He promised to stop what he called "ripoffs" by big oil, cellphone and banks, and his attacks are expected to focus on the Conservatives and all but ignore the Liberals. Elizabeth May
Elizabeth May
Elizabeth Evans May, OC, MP is an American-born Canadian Member of Parliament, environmentalist, writer, activist, lawyer, and the leader of the Green Party of Canada. She was the executive director of the Sierra Club of Canada from 1989 to 2006. She became a Canadian citizen in 1978.May's...
of the Green Party said Canadians would care enough about the environment to vote for her party, as long as she was able to get into the television debates. Stephen Harper has stated his objection to including the Green Party into television debates because of the similar policies of the Green and Liberal party, and how it would be unfair. Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe
Gilles Duceppe is a Canadian politician, and proponent of the Québec sovereignty movement. He was a Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons for over 20 years and was the leader of the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois for almost 15 years. He is the son of a well-known Quebec actor, Jean...
said the Conservatives must be prevented from winning a majority, and the BQ
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...
is the only party that can do that. Duceppe compared Harper to US President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, and said the government is incompetent.
Leaders' Debates
The two Leaders' Debates of 2008, one each in French and English, included the leaders of five parties, Stephen Harper of the Conservatives, Stéphane Dion of the Liberals, Jack Layton of the NDP, Gilles Duceppe of the Bloc Québécois and Elizabeth May of the Green Party.The French-language debate aired on Wednesday, October 1 from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, moderated by Stéphan Bureau
Stéphan Bureau
Stéphan Bureau is a journalist, TV interviewer and producer of TV shows and documentary series.- Life and career :...
, a journalist and host. The English-language debate aired Thursday, October 2 from 9 to 11 p.m. EDT, with Steve Paikin
Steve Paikin
Steve Paikin is a Canadian journalist, author, and documentary producer at TVOntario . He is currently anchor and senior editor of TVO's flagship current affairs program The Agenda with Steve Paikin, and previously hosted TVO's Studio 2 and Diplomatic Immunity.A native of Hamilton, Ontario,...
of TVOntario
TVOntario
TVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...
as moderator.
Participation
Three parties — the Conservatives, the Bloc Québécois and the NDP — opposed the inclusion of the Green Party, citing statements made by Green Party leader Elizabeth May to the effect that the best outcome of the election would be a Liberal-led government, and a deal struck between the Green Party and Liberals where the Liberals would not run in May's riding, Central Nova, and the Green party in Liberal leader Stéphane Dion's riding, Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, which they say make May a "second Liberal candidate".Stephen Harper and Jack Layton are reported to have said that if the Green Party were included, they would not participate in the Leaders' Debates. Dion said that while he supports May's inclusion, he would not attend if Harper does not, and the Bloc Québécois has stated it will not boycott the debates if May is included. The media consortium in charge of the debate, made up of the CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
, CTV
CTV television network
CTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
, Global Television
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
and TVA
TVA (TV network)
TVA is a privately owned French language television network in Canada. The network is currently owned by Groupe TVA Inc. , a publicly traded subsidiary of Quebecor Media...
, had decided that it would prefer to broadcast the debates with the four major party leaders, rather than risk not at all or with minimal participation. The Green Party indicated they had begun procedures to lodge a formal complaint with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, as they have in past federal elections.
On September 10, Harper and Layton released statements that they would not oppose May's inclusion in the debate, citing public backlash and protests — with neither acknowledging making the threat of boycotting the debate — and that the media consortium would reconvene to discuss the matter. Layton stated that "debating about the debate" had become a "distraction", and that he had only one condition, that Stephen Harper be there. In response, spokespeople for Stephen Harper announced they would not stand alone in opposition to the Green Party's inclusion in the debates and also changed their position on the matter. Later that day the consortium announced that May would be allowed to participate in the debate.
Format change
On September 30, Harper announced that he would ask for the 12 minutes on the economy scheduled for the Leader's Debate to be extended to an hour, citing that the financial crisis affecting the U.S. "has deepened since the debate format was finalized", a change which would require agreement from the other parties in the debate to be approved. The NDP released a statement soon after that they supported the move, while public response has been concerned that other topics such as the environment would not end up with enough time to cover the issue.On October 1, the day of the first debate, it was announced that both debates would get extended time, from 12 to 30 minutes, for the economy, and leaders would not give opening and closing statements, to allow for longer discussions on the economy without removing time from other topics. It was also revealed that instead of leaders standing at individual podiums for the debate, as had been done in past years, the debate would be done in a round table
Round table
A round table is a table which has no "head" and no "sides", and therefore no one person sitting at it is given a privileged position and all are treated as equals. The idea stems from the Arthurian legend about the Knights of the Round Table in Camelot....
format.
French debate
Much of French debate revolved around the economy and the environment, with the two topics repeatedly being brought up in discussions allotted for other topics. Stephen Harper came under criticism from every other leader in nearly every topic, especially the economy and environment, with the other party leaders stating that Harper's politics had led to Canada's current crises in those two areas. Their points included that Harper's environmental plan was considered the worst of all developed countries by organizations around the world, with Elizabeth May labeling it "a type of fraud," and that his attempts to remove regulations in the financial sectors, similar to those done by the Bush administration in the United States, have led Canada to being nearly as hard hit by the current financial crisis as the United States.
Continuous comparisons of Harper to George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
were made over the course of the debate, with Jack Layton stating at one point that with Bush ending his presidency at the end of the year, Harper would be "the last leader of a developed country to follow the Bush doctrine
Bush Doctrine
The Bush Doctrine is a phrase used to describe various related foreign policy principles of former United States president George W. Bush. The phrase was first used by Charles Krauthammer in June 2001 to describe the Bush Administration's unilateral withdrawals from the ABM treaty and the Kyoto...
."
English debate
Following the same tone as the French debate, much of the discussion revolved around the economy and the environment. The other four leaders keep criticizing Harper, especially for his lack of an economic platform despite asking for the format change to focus more on the economy in light of the ongoing financial crisis, and instead using the time to criticize the economic platforms of the other leaders. May lashed out at Harper for not understanding that Canadians were worried about their homes, jobs and finances, and comparing the current situation to Dutch disease
Dutch disease
In economics, the Dutch disease is a concept that purportedly explains the apparent relationship between the increase in exploitation of natural resources and a decline in the manufacturing sector...
, Dion stated that the only thing that keeps Canada from being hit as hard by the crisis as the US are laws created by the previous Liberal government that the Conservatives had been attempting to overturn, Duceppe repeatedly criticized Harper for financial practices and attitudes similar to the Bush administration, and Layton at one point stated that Harper's position showed he was either incompetent or uncaring to the situation, and asked which one he was, to which Harper did not respond. Harper also came under criticism for his laissez-faire attitude to the job sector, supporting primarily the oil companies and companies that outsource jobs in the manufacturing sector.
When it turned to the environment, the Carbon Tax proposal came up repeatedly, with both Dion and May supporting it, although May to more ambitious figures than Dion, pointing out it was the most recommended and proven way to deal with carbon emissions by countries and organizations around the world, noting the growth that Sweden and Germany have had with this system. Harper criticized the plan, saying would increase taxpayers' burden and that Dion should be "honest with the people" that some environmental measures will cost the economy and said the plan includes $40 billion in carbon taxes and $26 billion in tax cuts. Dion defended the Liberal's Green Shift, saying that "[Harper's statements are] not true at all", and that "for every dollar that we will raise, you will have a tax cut, and these tax cuts will be on your income". Duceppe commented that he would like targets to be applied to individual provinces, thereby allowing Quebec to financially benefit due to already-implemented greenhouse gas reductions. Layton, who favours a cap-and-trade system
Emissions trading
Emissions trading is a market-based approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants....
, said that it is a "figment of Mr. Harper's imagination" that emissions will fall under his plan. When Harper sought to outline his government's record on other environmental fronts, giving examples of his minority government supported the preservation of hundreds of thousands of hectares of environmentally sensitive land through the Nature Conservancy of Canada
Nature Conservancy of Canada
Nature Conservancy of Canada is a Canadian private not-for-profit charitable environmental organisation established in 1962. The NCC works to achieve the direct protection of what they deem as Canada's most important natural treasures through property securement and long-term stewardship of...
, and that the government declared a protected marine area by Lake Superior
Lake Superior
Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...
and created a whale sanctuary by Baffin Island
Baffin Island
Baffin Island in the Canadian territory of Nunavut is the largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is and its population is about 11,000...
, May responded by saying "The only word he said that's true is on national parks".
Layton also criticized Dion for his lack of accomplishments as official opposition during the minority government, and his party's previous leader's broken promises in areas such as Child Care and Pharmacare.
Duceppe painted the Conservative government's $45 million in national arts and culture funding cuts as an assault on the province's identity, saying "How can you recognize the Quebec nation and then cut culture [funding], which is the soul of a nation?" followed by citing the economic benefits of culture.
Harper also said he had erred in calling for Canada's participation in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, saying "It was absolutely an error, it's obviously clear", adding that the claim of weapons of mass destruction proved false.
Commenting on the debate, Layton said that he "thoroughly enjoyed" May's contributions to the debate. Reporter Julie Van Dusen
Julie Van Dusen
Julie Van Dusen is a Canadian journalist who works for CBC News and is seen mainly during The National.Van Dusen graduated with a degree in French literature and studied communications at the University of Ottawa. Van Dusen comes from a family of journalists as five of her siblings, including...
said that Harper managed to take the hits calmly, as "someone must have told him … if you fight back or get too partisan, you're going to alienate voters, especially women". Duceppe said he was happy to have forced Harper to admit his support of joining the Iraq war in 2003 was a mistake, adding he will use the admission in the campaign as "Exhibit A" that the Conservative leader lacks solid judgment skills, and that Harper was weakened when he confirmed he does not support a refundable tax credit for the manufacturing industry to encourage companies to improve productivity.
Arts
Stephen Harper had cut $45 million from arts funding while in office, a move that drew much criticism from the other leaders and QuebecQuebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
citizens, with most leaders seeking to restore the funding. The Conservatives have stated that the money is being reallocated to other arts and cultural programs, including various official languages projects, the 400th anniversary of Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
and projects connected with the 2010 Vancouver-Whistler Winter Olympic Games
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
, although the Conservative's refusal to have a parliamentary review of their cuts and for a moratorium on the measures until the House of Commons Heritage Committee had a chance to hold hearings on culture and arts funding has most opposition members calling foul.
Both Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton have promised to reverse the cut, with Dion also promising to increase funding to Canada Council for the Arts to $360 million, while Layton also promised to bring income averaging for artists to the national level and providing an annual tax exemption of $20,000 for income earned by copyright and residuals, stating that "one of the key things we must do, before we start giving $50-billion tax giveaways to banks and oil companies, is to protect and promote the arts" and "stable, sure and appropriate funding" for CBC/Radio-Canada
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
while also protecting Telefilm Canada
Telefilm Canada
Telefilm Canada or Téléfilm Canada is a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Canada.It is the primary federal cultural agency dedicated to the development and promotion of the Canadian audiovisual industry....
and the Canadian Television Fund
Canadian Television Fund
The Canadian Television Fund supported the production and broadcast of Canadian television programs. On 1 April 2010, the Canadian Television Fund became the Canada Media Fund...
.
Harper has said that he believes that the issue is a "niche topic", and that "ordinary Canadians" are not particularly concerned with the issue. A group of Canadian performers, which included Art Hindle
Art Hindle
Arthur Hindle is a Canadian actor and director.Hindle was born in Halifax. His family moved to Toronto while he was a child. Although shy as a youngster, he grew to be a rebellious and independent teenager...
, Wendy Crewson
Wendy Crewson
-Life and career:Crewson was born in Hamilton, Ontario, the daughter of June Doreen and Robert Binnie Crewson. She attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, where she won the prestigious Lorne Greene Award for outstanding work in the theater. She then studied at the Webber Douglas Academy...
and Gordon Pinsent
Gordon Pinsent
Gordon Edward Pinsent, CC, FRSC is a Canadian television, theatre and film actor.-Early life:Pinsent, the youngest of six children, was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland, the son of Flossie ; originally from Clifton, Newfoundland, and Stephen Arthur Pinsent, a papermill worker and cobbler;...
, held a press conference on September 24, saying the cuts would cripple the Canadian arts industry.
On September 29, Harper unveiled a new tax credit plan worth an estimated $150 million a year to encourage parents to enroll their kids in arts programs like music and drama. The credit will apply on up to $500 of eligible fees for children under 16 who participate in eligible arts activities. Harper said that "[the Conservatives] spend a lot more on culture and arts" but "in a way that we ensure is an effective use of taxpayers' money and ultimately, in this case, benefits families and all of society as well". Harper has come under criticism when the week before he expressed his opinion that "ordinary working people were unable to relate to taxpayer-subsidized cultural elites when they see them at a rich gala on television".
Alleged Cadman bribe attempt
In early 2008 it was alleged that Independent MP Chuck CadmanChuck Cadman
Charles "Chuck" Cadman was a Canadian politician and Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2005, representing the riding of Surrey North in Surrey, British Columbia.- Early life :...
of Surrey North
Surrey North
Surrey North is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. It covers the northern part of Surrey....
, who was terminally ill with cancer at the time, had been offered a half-million life insurance policy in exchange for voting against the proposed Liberal budget in May 2005, which he turned down. Under section 119 of the Criminal Code of Canada
Criminal Code of Canada
The Criminal Code or Code criminel is a law that codifies most criminal offences and procedures in Canada. Its official long title is "An Act respecting the criminal law"...
, it is illegal to bribe an MP. Accordingly, Opposition Liberal party Intergovernmental Affairs critic Dominic LeBlanc
Dominic LeBlanc
Dominic A. LeBlanc, PC, MP , is a Canadian lawyer and politician from New Brunswick, Canada. He is the Member of Parliament for the riding of Beauséjour and sits in the Canadian House of Commons as the Liberal Party's Foreign Affairs Critic. He was first elected in the 2000 federal election and has...
asked the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP) in February 2008 to investigate this allegation, that the Conservatives had offered Mr. Cadman a million-dollar life insurance policy in exchange for his support on the budget vote. In May 2008, the RCMP announced that there was not enough evidence to support charges.
Cadman died in July. The following month, Harper stated in a court deposition that he any such million-dollar offer would have to be authorized by him, and that he did not issue any such authorization. There is currently an ongoing legal battle between the Liberals and the Conservatives over the matter.
On September 24, while campaigning in Surrey North, Stephen Harper's campaign team barred reporters from talking with the local Conservative candidate, Dona Cadman
Dona Cadman
Dona Cadman is a Canadian politician, who represented the electoral district of Surrey North in the Canadian House of Commons from 2008 to 2011, as well as the widow of Chuck Cadman, a former Member of Parliament for the same district. She served in the Conservative Party of Canada...
, who is Chuck Cadman's widow. The campaign team called in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP), and ordered them to "Keep [the reporters] out" while Cadman was taken away by staff. Harper spokesman Kory Teneycke
Kory Teneycke
Kory Teneycke, is vice-president of Sun News Network. He was the former director of communications for the Canadian Prime Minister's Office.- Career :...
later stated that he had not seen the incident, but the local candidates did not need to be interviewed, that "Local candidates' priority is campaigning in their local ridings, and not talking to the national media", and that it should be enough that they hold daily news conferences with the party's most prominent members.
The incident has reminded people of Conservative tactics during the 2006 election, where attempts by the media to speak with local candidates were stopped by campaign personnel, especially the Harold Albrecht
Harold Albrecht
Harold Glenn Albrecht is a Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party of Canada in the riding of Kitchener—Conestoga...
incident, where campaign officials forced Albrecht to stay in a restaurant kitchen when journalists attempted to interview him.
The Conservatives chose former U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
agent Bruce Koenig to analyze a tape of reporter Tom Zytaruk interviewing Harper on the Cadman bribe attempt. The tape was a key piece of evidence in the ongoing legal battle. On October 10, Koenig announced that the tape had not been altered in any way, contrary to the claims by Stephen Harper that it had been altered.
Canadian involvement in Afghanistan
The ongoing involvement of the Canadian ForcesCanadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
may also influence voters. Desmond Morton, a political science professor at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
suggested that the Conservatives could be blamed for the war because they have extended the mission twice, despite the fact that it was then Liberal Leader Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
who was Canada's prime minister when Canada's current military involvement in Afghanistan first started in 2001. Both the Conservatives and Liberals have at various times agreed to extend the mission(s) to at least 2011, so this may result in some Canadians who are strongly against Canada's ongoing involvement, who might have otherwise typically voted either Liberal or Conservative in the past, to take their votes elsewhere in 2008.
Cities and infrastructure
Toronto Mayor David MillerDavid Miller (Canadian politician)
David Raymond Miller is a Canadian politician. He was the 63rd Mayor of Toronto and the second since the 1998 amalgamation. He was elected to the position in 2003 for a three-year term and re-elected in 2006 for a four-year term...
has spoken out that the parties need to focus more on cities and their infrastructure, stating that 8 out of 10 Canadians live in cities, and that so far only the Green party has revealed a platform on the issue, with a national transit strategy and plans to give cities a permanent revenue source to help fix a growing infrastructure backlog. Miller stated he will not endorse a specific party, but urges people to choose a party that will "help cities thrive". He disagrees with Stephen Harper's opinion that "cities are not of national importance".
On September 18, Stéphane Dion pledged to spend more than $70 billion over the next 10 years to improve Canada's infrastructure if elected, and budget surpluses that exceed a $3-billion contingency fund to infrastructure projects, particularly those with a green focus, calling Canada's cities and towns "the engines of our economy". Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
immediately lashed out at the spending proposal, saying Dion was "promising money no government could afford" and that the Conservative's infrastructure plans "are modest and affordable within the four-year budget we've published".
On September 23, Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and Toronto mayors Gérald Tremblay
Gérald Tremblay
Gérald Tremblay is a Canadian politician and businessman currently serving his third term as mayor of Montreal and as president of the Montreal Metropolitan Community...
and David Miller laid out their demands for urban municipalities, describing cities' current financial problems as a national issue, saying that cities have become the country's economic, social and cultural development engines and need appropriate support, and that they need better "fiscal tools" to continue their role as Canada's economic engines or the country will suffer. They listed Homelessness
Homelessness
Homelessness describes the condition of people without a regular dwelling. People who are homeless are unable or unwilling to acquire and maintain regular, safe, and adequate housing, or lack "fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence." The legal definition of "homeless" varies from country...
, traffic gridlock
Gridlock
The term gridlock is defined as "A state of severe road congestion arising when continuous queues of vehicles block an entire network of intersecting streets, bringing traffic in all directions to a complete standstill; a traffic jam of this kind." The term originates from a situation possible in...
, crowded buses and overstretched police departments as just a few of the symptoms, that "These problems are too big and too important to be solved on the backs of property taxpayers" and that "in order to remain competitive, transport goods efficiently and attract new talent, our cities require quality infrastructure, affordable housing and first-rate recreational and cultural facilities". Jean Perrault
Jean Perrault
Jean Perrault is a Canadian politician, who served as mayor of Sherbrooke, Quebec from 1994 to 2009, and as president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities....
, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities
Federation of Canadian Municipalities
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities is a civic advocacy group representing many Canadian municipalities. It is an organization with no formal power but significant ability to influence debate and policy, as it is main national lobby group of mayors, councillors and other elected municipal...
and mayor of Sherbrooke, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, has stated that things like the Federal Gas Tax Fund were an important federal commitment, but that more is needed to tackle cities' overwhelming infrastructure needs.
On September 29, Layton announced plans to direct one cent per litre of the gas tax, approximately $400 million a year, into transit projects across the country, and direct $350 million from the sale of carbon permits to big polluters, saying that "the major polluters would be the ones paying to make transit greener, not you and your families", and that "fighting climate change requires investing in transit, and that's what our plan does".
Economy
Polls have suggested that the economyEconomy of Canada
Canada has the tenth largest economy in the world , is one of the world's wealthiest nations, and is a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and Group of Eight . As with other developed nations, the Canadian economy is dominated by the service industry, which employs...
is the major issue going into this election, especially with the resulting high price of gas, along with rising prices of other goods and services, such as food, and the possible impact the current financial crisis may have on Canada. Some experts say that Canada has just narrowly dodged a recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
, although the economy is in its worst shape since 1991.
Both Dion and Harper have said that the others' plans will lead Canada into a recession, while Dion also stated that Harper has "mismanaged a once-booming economy into one with growth dropping to among the lowest of the G8
G8
The Group of Eight is a forum, created by France in 1975, for the governments of seven major economies: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 1997, the group added Russia, thus becoming the G8...
nations".
The Conservatives have stated possible negative consequences that could happen to the economy based on Liberal election promise
Election promise
An election promise is a promise made to the public by a politician who is trying to win an election. They have long been a central element of elections and remain so today...
s if they were to be elected. As of September 20, 2008, Liberal election promises have totaled in excess of $80 billion spending over the next decade. In contrast, the cost of programs promised by the Conservatives to date is less than $2 billion annually. Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister, has criticized the Liberal's spending promises, saying they are making "mind-boggling" spending plans that he predicts would send Canada into deficit.
After the rejection of the proposed bailout of the United States financial system and resulting market fluctuation all over the world, including the Toronto Stock Exchange
Toronto Stock Exchange
Toronto Stock Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Canada, the third largest in North America and the seventh largest in the world by market capitalisation. Based in Canada's largest city, Toronto, it is owned by and operated as a subsidiary of the TMX Group for the trading of senior equities...
, Jack Layton called for Harper to call a special meeting for federal party leaders to discuss the potential effects of the U.S economic crisis on Canadians, suggestion the afternoon of October 1, since all leaders would be in Ottawa for the first Leaders' Debate that night. A spokesman for Harper later reported that Harper would not call such a meeting, and to save discussion for the Leader's Debate, as "[they] will have an opportunity later this week to debate — not behind closed doors but in front of all Canadians — the issues at stake not [just] for our economy but for our country". Harper later announced that he would ask for the 12 minutes on the economy scheduled for the Leader's Debate to be extended to an hour, citing that the financial crisis affecting the U.S. "has deepened since the debate format was finalized", a change which would require agreement from the other parties in the debate to be approved. The NDP released a statement soon after that they supported the move, while public response has been concerned that other topics such as the environment would not end up with enough time to cover the issue. All the leaders supported the idea, and the opening and closing statements were dropped and the allotted time for the economy extended to 30 minutes without affecting the other topics.
During the Leaders' Debates Harper repeatedly came under fire for lack of an economic plan in the current time of crisis and while campaigning, and for his lack of ability to explain how he would deal with the current crisis, merely repeating that Canada was unlikely to face such a crisis as he had made "different choices" than the US while in power without being able to explain what those different choices were, as all of his examples were immediately compared to practices done by the Bush administration, and insisted that Canadians "don't panic." In response to mounting pressure from the public, Harper announced on October 3 that he would reveal his party's platform, including economic matters, on October 7, one week before the election.
Environment
Shortly after the election was called, Harper was criticized for using a four-vehicle motorcadeMotorcade
A motorcade is a procession of vehicles. The term motorcade was coined by Lyle Abbot , and is formed after cavalcade on the false notion that "-cade" was a suffix meaning "procession"...
that included a van and SUV
Sport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
to travel the 395 m (1,295.9 ft) across the street from the door of 24 Sussex Drive
24 Sussex Drive
24 Sussex Drive is the official residence of the Prime Minister of Canada, located in the New Edinburgh neighbourhood of Ottawa, Ontario. Built between 1866 and 1868 by Joseph Merrill Currier, it has been the official home of the Canadian prime minister since 1951.-History:The house at 24 Sussex...
to the door of Rideau Hall
Rideau Hall
Rideau Hall is, since 1867, the official residence in Ottawa of both the Canadian monarch and the Governor General of Canada. It stands in Canada's capital on a 0.36 km2 estate at 1 Sussex Drive, with the main building consisting of 170 rooms across 9,500 m2 , and 24 outbuildings around the...
to dissolve parliament. In return, the Conservatives criticized the Liberal party's decision to use a 29-year-old Boeing 737-200 for campaigning, saying that the older airplane's poor fuel efficiency demonstrates hypocrisy on environmental matters. Daniel Lauzon, a spokesperson for the Liberals, denied their airplane was substantially less efficient than the Conservatives' Airbus A319.
The Tories have been previously criticized for backing out of Canada's commitments under the Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
. Their new plan requires industries to reduce the rate at which they generate greenhouse gases, with a goal of reducing overall emissions by 45 to 65 percent by 2050. The plan has been criticized by groups such as the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
, who called it "completely inadequate". Criticism has focused on the use of "intensity-based" targets, for which emission reductions are relative to overall production, so overall emissions could potentially increase if production also increases. This is in contrast to a "hard cap" on emissions, for which the overall amount cannot increase. The Conservatives' plan includes a hard cap to begin in 2020 or 2025, while environmental groups have advocated for an immediate hard cap.
The Liberals have developed a "Green Shift
Ecotax
Ecotax refers to taxes intended to promote ecologically sustainable activities via economic incentives. Such a policy can complement or avert the need for regulatory approaches. Often, an ecotax policy proposal may attempt to maintain overall tax revenue by proportionately reducing other taxes...
" plan, creating a carbon tax
Carbon tax
A carbon tax is an environmental tax levied on the carbon content of fuels. It is a form of carbon pricing. Carbon is present in every hydrocarbon fuel and is released as carbon dioxide when they are burnt. In contrast, non-combustion energy sources—wind, sunlight, hydropower, and nuclear—do not...
that will be coupled with reductions to income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
rates. The proposal was to tax greenhouse gas emissions, starting at $10 (Canadian) per ton of CO2 and reaching $40 (Canadian) per ton within four years. The plan would engage in revenue recycling by matching the tax with reductions in the income tax. Criticism of the Green Shift plan has focused on its economic effects, with the Conservatives predicting it would cause a "big recession". When pressed by reporters to provide evidence of this impact, Harper "wasn't able to cite a study that specifically modelled the impact of the Liberal Green Shift plan", instead citing an older economic model about the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol.
One truck
Truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
ing association claimed the Liberal carbon tax plan could put up to 10,000 jobs in jeopardy in Moncton alone. Environmental activist David Suzuki
David Suzuki
David Suzuki, CC, OBC is a Canadian academic, science broadcaster and environmental activist. Suzuki earned a Ph.D in zoology from the University of Chicago in 1961, and was a professor in the genetics department of the University of British Columbia from 1963 until his retirement in 2001...
has come out in support of Dion's plan, saying "To oppose [the carbon tax plan], it's just nonsense. It's certainly the way we got to go" and giving an interview explaining why it is the most effective way to solve the environmental crisis.
The NDP's plan for the environment has focused on emissions trading
Emissions trading
Emissions trading is a market-based approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants....
, claiming their system will decrease greenhouse emissions by 80% by 2050. The plan includes a series of financial incentives to retrofit public transit systems and transition the economy to be "green-collar
Green-collar worker
A green-collar worker is a worker who is employed in the environmental sectors of the economy. Environmental green-collar workers satisfy the demand for green development. Generally, they implement environmentally conscious design, policy, and technology to improve conservation and sustainability...
". The plan would also halt new tar sands
Athabasca Oil Sands
The Athabasca oil sands are large deposits of bitumen, or extremely heavy crude oil, located in northeastern Alberta, Canada - roughly centred on the boomtown of Fort McMurray...
development until emissions have been capped. Layton has also criticized the Liberal carbon tax plan, stating it taxes families instead of polluters.
Equalization
Danny WilliamsDanny Williams (politician)
Daniel E. "Danny" Williams, QC, MHA is a Canadian politician, businessman and lawyer who served as the ninth Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador between November 6, 2003, and December 3, 2010. Williams was born and raised in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador...
, the Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador
For pre-1949 Conservative parties see Conservative parties in Newfoundland The Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador is a centre-right provincial political party in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Originally founded in 1949 the party has formed the Government of...
premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
, launched a campaign called Anything But Conservative
Anything But Conservative
Anything But Conservative , also known as the ABC campaign, was a political campaign in the 2008 Canadian federal election encouraging voters to support any party other than the federal Conservative Party...
, primarily targeted at Harper and the federal Conservatives. He opposes a Conservative majority, due in part to Harper's promise during the 2006 election to modify the equalization
Equalization payments
Equalization payments are cash payments made in some federal systems of government from the federal government to subnational governments with the objective of offsetting differences in available revenue or in the cost of providing services....
formula to fully share offshore oil revenues with the province, which Williams says Harper has broken, and what Harper has stated he will do with a majority government. Accordingly, all but one member of the provincial PC caucus supported not voting Conservative in this election.
Leo Power, a veteran of federal politics and the Conservative Party of Canada's campaign co-chair for Newfoundland and Labrador, said raising money and recruiting volunteers has proved difficult, and blames Williams's ABC campaign, saying it has cut deep into the federal election machine that is struggling to compete. Power has also said his party's best hope of winning a seat in the province is in the riding of Avalon
Avalon (electoral district)
Avalon is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: Languages:² Unemployment: 25.9%...
with incumbent candidate Fabian Manning
Fabian Manning
Fabian Manning is a politician in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Manning served as a Progressive Conservative and later as the independent Member of the House of Assembly for the district of Placentia and St. Mary’s from 1999 to 2005. From 2006 to 2008 he was the Conservative Party of Canada...
. Manning was defeated by Liberal Scott Andrews
Scott Andrews (politician)
Scott Andrews is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the Newfoundland and Labrador electoral district of Avalon in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Liberal Party...
, while St. John's East
St. John's East
St. John's East is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949....
and St. John's South—Mount Pearl
St. John's South—Mount Pearl
St. John's South redirects here. For the provincial electoral district please see St. John's South St. John's South—Mount Pearl is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:Ethnic groups:...
, which were represented by Conservatives not running for re-election, were won by the NDP and Liberals, respectively, leaving the Conservatives with no representatives in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Leadership
Since before the election was announced, the Conservative party has been running attack ads about Dion, saying he is not a capable leader. Dion has criticized the Conservatives for running the ads.On October 9, Stephen Harper called into question the abilities of Liberal leader Dion after footage from the false starts of an interview on CTV Atlantic
CTV Atlantic
CTV Atlantic is a system of four television stations in the Canadian Maritimes, owned and operated by the CTV Television Network, a division of Bell Media...
, and later rebroadcast on Mike Duffy Live, were aired to the public, and criticized Dion's grasp of the English language and the strength of the Liberals' plan for the Canadian economy.
The footage shows interviewer Steve Murphy
Steve Murphy (Canadian news anchor)
Steve Murphy is the current anchor of CTV News at Noon on A Atlantic and weekday editions of CTV News atnotic]]. Murphy started his career in the Spring of 1977 at CFBC Saint John. Murphy then moved to CJCH-AM Halifax in May 1980...
asking Dion the question: "If you were the Prime Minister now, what would you have done about the economy, and this crisis, that Mr. Harper has not done?". Dion had difficulty in understanding the question, repeatedly asking Murphy to clarify if he meant if Dion was Prime Minister now, next Tuesday on election day, last week, last month, 60 weeks ago, or two and a half years ago. Eventually, after three start overs to the interview, Dion responded with what he would do if elected Prime Minister in the future. CTV initially agreed to re-start the interviews and not air the false starts but changed their minds and announced that they felt it was their responsibility to show it. Harper responded to the clips by saying that "When you're running a trillion-and-a-half-dollar economy you don't get a chance to have do-overs, over and over again" and "What this incident actually indicates very clearly is Mr. Dion and the Liberal Party really don't know what they would do on the economy", and when told that the difficulties were in part due to English being Dion's second language, Harper said "I don't think this is a question of language at all. The question was very clear. It was asked repeatedly."
Mark Dunn
Mark Dunn
Mark Dunn is an American author and playwright. He studied film at Memphis State University followed by post-graduate work in screenwriting at the University of Texas moving to New York in 1987 where he worked in the New York Public Library whilst writing plays in his free time.Among the...
, a spokesman for Dion, accused the Tories of making fun of the Liberal leader's hearing issues. Dion responded to Harper's comments, saying Harper had "no class", saying "I did not understand the question", and "Maybe it's because I have a hearing problem, maybe because [English is] my second language, but I did not understand the question." Both the Conservatives and the CTV have come under criticism for their handling of the footage, but they have stated they stand by their actions. Duceppe has called Harper's comments a "double standard", saying that many English-speaking politicians have little or no ability to speak French, yet francophones are somehow always expected to be perfect, and that the attack was an attempted "low blow". But Duceppe also took the opportunity to criticise Dion, suggesting he understood the question. "The real question is that I think Dion understood the question. The real problem wasn't the language, it was the substance," Duceppe said, "He had nothing to say". Layton also defended Dion, saying he has "struggled with questions, too."
Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
has come out criticizing Harper's leadership abilities, noting especially Harper's controlling ways with his cabinet ministers, saying he would have quit if former prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau had treated him that way, that "Mr. Dion was a minister for nine years. And Mr. Harper arrived there with no experience and it shows", that the phrase 'Tory times are bad times', in use since the 1930s, was still true and that "Harper destroyed 50 years of relationships with China", Canada's second biggest trading partner after the US, noting both past Liberal and Progressive Conservative governments sought to maintain its dealings with the key trading partner. Former Prime Minister Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
has also supported Dion's plans and abilities, and many have noted Dion's ability to get both Chrétien and Martin to support him, despite Chrétien and Martin's ongoing feud.
Listeriosis outbreak
The Minister of AgricultureMinister of Agriculture (Canada)
The Minister of Agriculture is a Minister of the Crown in the Cabinet of Canada, who is responsible for overseeing several organizations including Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Canadian Dairy Commission, Farm Credit Canada, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, National Farm Products Council and...
Gerry Ritz
Gerry Ritz
Gerry Ritz, PC, MP is Canada's Agriculture minister and a Canadian Member of Parliament for Battlefords—Lloydminster, a largely rural riding in Saskatchewan...
, who has already been criticized by Canada's food scientists for his handling of the 2008 listeriosis outbreak
2008 Canadian listeriosis outbreak
The 2008 Canadian listeriosis outbreak was a widespread outbreak of listeriosis in Canada linked to cold cuts from a Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto, Ontario. 22 people died and there were 57 total confirmed cases.-Origin and spread:...
, has also been criticized for making inappropriate comments, further angering the families of those affected. Ritz had joked about the outbreak while he was on a conference call with scientists and political staffers on August 30, saying the political fallout from the outbreak was "like a death by a thousand cuts, or should I say cold cuts". In addition, when he was informed of a listeriosis-related death in Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
, he quipped "Please tell me it's [Liberal agriculture critic] Wayne Easter
Wayne Easter
Arnold Wayne Easter, PC, MP is a Canadian politician.-Before politics:Born in North Wiltshire, Prince Edward Island the son of A. Leith Easter and Hope MacLeod, he was educated at the Charlottetown Rural High School and the Nova Scotia Agricultural College. In 1970, he married Helen Arleighn...
." Despite calls for Ritz's resignation from the other parties and the public, Stephen Harper has supported Ritz and rebuffed calls for his resignation.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada
Public Service Alliance of Canada
The Public Service Alliance of Canada is one of Canada’s largest national labour unions, with members in every province and territory. In fact, it is the biggest union in the Canadian Federal Public Sector...
revealed to the media that the Conservative party plans to cut federal funding to meat inspection programs by $3 million, effectively ending their operation in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.
Speech plagiarism
On September 30, it was revealed by Bob RaeBob Rae
Robert Keith "Bob" Rae, PC, OC, OOnt, QC, MP is a Canadian politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre and interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
of the Liberal Party that on March 20, 2003, Stephen Harper had plagiarized
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work, but the notion remains problematic with nebulous...
a speech that called for troops to be deployed to Iraq to assist the US invasion
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
from Australian Prime Minister John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
, which Howard had delivered two days before, on March 18.
Following Rae's statement, Harper's spokesman Kory Teneycke
Kory Teneycke
Kory Teneycke, is vice-president of Sun News Network. He was the former director of communications for the Canadian Prime Minister's Office.- Career :...
dismissed the issue as irrelevant, saying "I'm not going to get into a debate about a five-year-old speech that was delivered three Parliaments ago, two elections ago, when the prime minister was the leader of a party that no longer exists".
The Canadian Alliance staff member and former Fraser Institute
Fraser Institute
The Fraser Institute is a Canadian think tank. It has been described as politically conservative and right-wing libertarian and espouses free market principles...
policy analyst, Owen Lippert, who wrote that speech was working on the current election campaign at Conservative campaign headquarters. On September 30, 2008 he issued a statement and resigned as a result of the incident.
He stated:
On October 3, there was a second plagiarism allegation from the Liberals, who said that Harper had copied several sentences from a speech by former Ontario premier Mike Harris
Mike Harris
Michael Deane "Mike" Harris was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 15, 2002. He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government...
. Harper denied the allegation, saying "we're talking about a couple of sentences of fairly standard political rhetoric".
On October 6, the Conservatives contended that Dion had also committed plagiarism when, as Minister of the Environment in 2005, he went to a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
conference on climate change to deliver a speech which had substantial similarities to the executive summary of a year old UN report. The Liberal party did not respond to the plagiarism allegation.
Conservative
Chris Reid, the Conservative candidate from Toronto Centre
Toronto Centre
Toronto Centre is a federal electoral district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1872 to 1925, and since 1935, under the names Centre Toronto , Toronto Centre , Rosedale and Toronto Centre—Rosedale .Toronto Centre covers the heart of...
, resigned over controversial statements on his blog, which advocated revising Canadian gun control
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
legislation to legalize concealed carriage
Concealed carry
Concealed carry, or CCW , refers to the practice of carrying a handgun or other weapon in public in a concealed manner, either on one's person or in proximity.-In Canada:...
of handguns. He was replaced by David Gentili.
The Conservatives apologized after an aide to Pontiac
Pontiac (electoral district)
Pontiac is a federal electoral district in south-western Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1949 and since 1968....
candidate Lawrence Cannon
Lawrence Cannon
Lawrence Cannon, PC is a Canadian politician from Quebec and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's former Quebec lieutenant. On October 30, 2008 he was sworn in as Minister of Foreign Affairs...
told Aboriginal
Aboriginal peoples in Canada
Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
protesters that they were free to meet with Cannon "if you behave and you're sober and there's no problems and if you don't do a sit down and whatever."
Liberal
Liberal candidate Simon Bédard was also asked to resign after he reiterated his 1990 comments, suggesting that lethal force should have been used in the Oka Crisis
Oka Crisis
The Oka Crisis was a land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec, Canada which began on July 11, 1990 and lasted until September 26, 1990. At least one person died as a result...
.
Liberal candidate Lesley Hughes was dropped by the Liberal Party after making controversial comments about the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. She continued to campaign as an independent, though she appeared as a Liberal on the ballot.
NDP
Andrew McKeever, an NDP candidate in Durham
Durham (electoral district)
Durham is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1968, and since 1988....
, announced on October 3 that he would resign from the election campaign after it was revealed that he had posted comments on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
in which he called one war activist a “fascist bitch” and threatened to beat up another person. Mr. McKeever wrote comments peppered with expletives and calling the operators of a war resister website “Nazis.” McKeever was also quoted as saying “I like the part in Schindler’s List when the guard starts waxing the prisoners.” McKeever’s decision to drop out of the race came with just over a week left in the campaign, meaning his name would remain on the ballot. One week before the publication of McKeever's resignation, NDP leader Jack Layton defended McKeever and refused to make him step down.
Julian West
Julian West (politician)
Julian West is a mathematician, political and environmental activist from British Columbia, Canada.- Early life and career :West moved with his family to British Columbia, Canada in 1968...
, the candidate for the riding of Saanich—Gulf Islands
Saanich—Gulf Islands
Saanich—Gulf Islands is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988...
, dropped out of the race after details surfaced about an environmental event he attended 12 years ago when he went skinny-dipping and asked two teenagers to body-paint him. Two other candidates in British Columbia who were proponents of marijuana decriminalization — Dana Larsen
Dana Larsen
Dana Albert Larsen is a Canadian author, politician and cannabis legalization activist.Larsen was the editor of Cannabis Culture magazine from its creation in 1994 until 2005, producing 54 issues with publisher Marc Emery, who now also serves as editor.Larsen was a founding member of both the...
and Kirk Tousaw — resigned earlier after videos they had produced for Internet site Pot-TV were released to the media. One of the videos, filmed in 2000, showed Mr. Larsen, former leader of the BC Marijuana Party, preparing to light up a joint before driving a car, after having taken the short-acting hallucinogenic drug DMT earlier in the evening.
Green
John Shavluk, the Green candidate in Newton—North Delta
Newton—North Delta
Newton—North Delta is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004...
, was removed from the party's slate of candidates on September 4, just before the election call, after it was revealed that he had previously published comments in his blog about the September 11 attacks in 2001, in which he referred to the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
as "the shoddily built Jewish world bank headquarters". He was replaced by Liz Walker as the Green Party candidate, but remained on the ballot as an independent.
Independent
At an all-candidates debate staged for a high school student audience in Sudbury
Sudbury (electoral district)
Sudbury is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949.Its population in 2001 was 89,443. The district is one of two serving the city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario....
on September 29, independent candidate David Popescu responded to a question about same-sex marriage by stating that "homosexuals should be executed". His remarks were widely criticized across Canada, and the Greater Sudbury Police Service
Greater Sudbury Police Service
The Greater Sudbury Police Service is the police force for Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The service is currently made up of 255 uniformed staff and 102 civilians. Two K-9 officers are included in the uniform staff....
announced an investigation into whether the comments constituted a crime under Canadian hate speech
Hate speech
Hate speech is, outside the law, any communication that disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, or other characteristic....
legislation. He was subsequently investigated by the Toronto Police as well, after a radio interview on October 2 in which he specifically advocated the execution of Egale Canada
Egale Canada
Egale Canada is an advocacy organization founded in 1986 to advance equality for Canadian lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their families, across Canada....
executive director Helen Kennedy
Helen Kennedy
Helen Kennedy is a Canadian politician and social activist. She is the executive director of Egale Canada.-Background:Born in Ireland, she came to Canada in 1979 at age 21....
.
Vandalism
Supporters of Ontario Liberal MPs Carolyn BennettCarolyn Bennett
Carolyn Ann Bennett, PC, MP is the Member of Parliament for the riding of St. Paul's, a constituency located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada, and was formerly a candidate for its leadership....
(St. Paul's
St. Paul's
St. Paul's is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1935. It is also the name of the two municipal wards and the local Toronto District School Board ward St. Paul's is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that...
) and Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Michael Kennedy is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as Ontario's Minister of Education from 2003 to 2006, when he resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada...
(Parkdale—High Park
Parkdale—High Park
Parkdale—High Park is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979.Peggy Nash of the New Democratic Party was elected the Member of Parliament for the riding on May 2, 2011....
) who had Liberal signs outside their houses were subject to vandalism
Vandalism
Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...
during the later hours of October 3, including graffiti, phone and cable lines being cut, and damage to vehicles that included brake cutting. Toronto police reported over 30 incidents of vandalism as of October 6. Some of the victims did not realize their brakes had been cut until they were in traffic, and there was at least one near-accident. Liberal Senator Jerry Grafstein
Jerry Grafstein
Jerahmiel S. "Jerry" Grafstein is a former Canadian Senator and lawyer.He is married to Carole and has two children, Laurence Stephen and Michael Kevin....
was one of the residents who reported vandalism to his car.
Vandalism was also reported at the campaign offices of Trinity—Spadina Liberal candidate Christine Innes and Beaches—East York New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
candidate Marilyn Churley, as well as in Niagara Falls.
Legality of the election
After the election was called, Democracy WatchDemocracy Watch (Canada)
Democracy Watch, established in 1993, is a Canadian organization that advocates on democratic reform, government accountability and corporate responsibility issues...
, an Ottawa-based advocacy group, filed a legal suit claiming that the election call was illegal because it violated the 2007 amendments to the Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act
Canada Elections Act is an Act of the Parliament of Canada respecting the election of members of parliament to the Canadian House of Commons, repealing other Acts relating to elections and making consequential amendments to other Acts....
. These amendments, introduced by the Harper government, set fixed dates for elections, and fulfilled a 2006 promise made by Harper to end the Prime Minister's ability to call snap elections.
On September 17, 2009, the Federal Court of Canada
Federal Court of Canada
The Federal Court of Canada was a national court of Canada that heard some types of disputes arising under the central government's legislative jurisdiction...
ruled that the election was not unfair, and therefore not illegal. Democracy Watch's appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal was also dismissed, and the Supreme Court denied leave to hear a further appeal.
Target seats
The following is a list of ridings which had narrowly been lost by the indicated party in the 2006 election. For instance, under the Liberal column are the 15 seats in which they came closest to winning but did not. Listed is the name of the riding, followed by the party which was victorious (in parentheses) and the margin, in terms of percentage of the vote, by which the party lost.These ridings were targeted by the specified party because the party had lost them by a very slim margin in the 2006 election.
Up to 15 are shown, with a maximum margin of victory of 15%.
| Conservative Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum... |
Liberal Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative... |
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Parry Sound—Muskoka Parry Sound—Muskoka is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949.... , ON (Con) <0.1% (held) Winnipeg South Winnipeg South is a Canadian federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1979, and since 1988. It covers the south of the city of Winnipeg... , MB (Con) 0.3% (held) Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Glengarry—Prescott—Russell is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953... , ON (Con) 0.4% (held) Tobique—Mactaquac Tobique—Mactaquac is a federal electoral district in New Brunswick, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997... , NB (Con) 0.9% (held) St. Catharines (electoral district) St. Catharines is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.It consists of the part of the City of St. Catharines lying north of a line drawn from west to east along St. Paul Street West, St... , ON (Con) 1.1% (held) Ahuntsic (electoral district) Ahuntsic is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1968 to 1979 and since 1988... , QC (BQ) 1.7% (held) Fleetwood—Port Kells Fleetwood—Port Kells is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:... , BC (Con) 1.9% (held) London—Fanshawe London—Fanshawe is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:The district consists of the southeast part of the City of London.... , ON (NDP) 1.9% (held) Ottawa—Orléans Ottawa—Orléans is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.... , ON (Con) 2.0% (held) Simcoe North Simcoe North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada. It was established as a federal riding in 1867. Its population was 119,400 in 2006.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 92.3% White, 5.9% Native Canadian... , ON (Con) 2.0% (held) Brossard—La Prairie Brossard—La Prairie is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2006 was 113,985.-Geography:... , QC (BQ) 2.2% (won) Papineau (electoral district) Papineau is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1948 to 1988 and since 2004. Its population in 2006 was 101,019.... , QC (BQ) 2.2% (won) Burnaby—Douglas Burnaby—Douglas is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-History:... , BC (NDP) 2.6% (held) Barrie (electoral district) Barrie is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. It consists of the City of Barrie in the County of Simcoe. It was created in 2003 when its predecessor, Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford, was... , ON (Con) 2.7% (held) Kitchener—Conestoga Kitchener—Conestoga is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... , ON (Con) 2.7% (held) |
| Bloc Québécois Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative... |
New Democratic New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in... |
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Louis-Hébert (electoral district) Louis-Hébert is a federal electoral district in the Canadian province of Quebec. Represented in the House of Commons since 2004, its population was certified, according to the detailed statistics of 2001, as 98,156.-Geography:... , QC (Con) 0.4% (won) Beauport—Limoilou Beauport—Limoilou is a federal electoral district in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.... , QC (Con) 1.6% (held) Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It was created as "Charlesbourg" riding in 2003 from parts of Charlesbourg—Jacques-Cartier riding... , QC (Con) 2.7% (held) Hull—Aylmer Hull—Aylmer is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1917.... , QC (Lib) 3.3% (held) Honoré-Mercier (electoral district) Honoré-Mercier is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2006 was 106,196.-Geography:... , QC (Lib) 3.8% (held) Pontiac (electoral district) Pontiac is a federal electoral district in south-western Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1949 and since 1968.... , QC (Con) 5.0% (held) Laval—Les Îles Laval—Les Îles is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.Its population in 2001 was 100,137... , QC (Lib) 6.1% (held) Outremont (electoral district) Outremont is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1935 to 1949, and since 1968... , QC (Lib) 6.3%¹ (held by NDP) Bourassa (electoral district) Bourassa is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968... , QC (Lib) 11.4% (held) Jonquière—Alma Jonquière—Alma is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It was created in 2003 from parts of Jonquière and Lac-Saint-Jean—Saguenay ridings.It consists of:... , QC (Con) 12.8% (held) Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1867... , QC (Ind) 13.9% (held) |
Thunder Bay—Superior North Thunder Bay—Superior North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1976.... , ON (Lib) 1.0%* (won) Newton—North Delta Newton—North Delta is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... , BC (Lib) 1.6% (held) Thunder Bay—Rainy River Thunder Bay—Rainy River is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... , ON (Lib) 1.7% (won) Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... , ON (Lib) 3.7% (won) Nickel Belt Nickel Belt is one of two federal electoral districts serving the Greater City of Sudbury.Nickel Belt has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.It consists of:... , ON (Lib) 4.6%* * (won) Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.-Demographics:-Geography:It initially consisted of:... , BC (Lib) 4.6% (held) Welland (electoral district) Welland is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1988, and since 2004. Its population in 2006 was 112,875.... , ON (Lib) 4.8% (won) Oshawa (electoral district) Oshawa is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.... , ON (Con) 5.2% (held) Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Demographics:-Geography:... , BC (Con) 5.2% (held) Beaches—East York Beaches—East York is a federal electoral district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.... , ON (Lib) 5.4% (held) Kenora (electoral district) Kenora is a federal and former provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004, and was represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from the early twentieth century.... , ON (Lib) 5.7% (won by Conservatives) Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:... , SK (Con) 6.5%* (held) Central Nova Central Nova is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1968 to 1997 and since 2004. Its population in 2001 was 73,722.... , NS (Con) 7.8% (held) South Shore—St. Margaret's South Shore–St. Margaret's is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. It covers the South Shore region of Nova Scotia.... , NS (Con) 8.3% (held) Fleetwood—Port Kells Fleetwood—Port Kells is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:... , BC (Con) 8.3% (held) |
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† Won by the Conservatives in an intervening by-election with more than a 15% margin over the Liberals. ‡ The incumbent had become an independent and was sitting as a Green at the time of dissolution. ¹ Won by the NDP in an intervening by-election with more than a 19% margin over the Liberals. |
|
- The Green Party of CanadaGreen Party of CanadaThe Green Party of Canada is a Canadian federal political party founded in 1983 with 10,000–12,000 registered members as of October 2008. The Greens advance a broad multi-issue political platform that reflects its core values of ecological wisdom, social justice, grassroots democracy and...
did not come within 15% of winning any riding in the 2006 election, but came 9.0% short of winning London North CentreLondon North CentreLondon North Centre is an electoral district in the province of Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997....
, ON (Lib) in a November 2006 by-election.
Targeted Cabinet ministers
The following Cabinet ministers were elected by a margin of less than 10% in 2006:- Tony ClementTony ClementTony Peter Clement, PC, MP is a Canadian federal politician, President of the Treasury Board, Minister for the Federal Economic Initiative for Northern Ontario and member of the Conservative Party of Canada....
, Health and Federal Economic Initiative for Northern Ontario: 0.1% over Lib in Parry Sound—MuskokaParry Sound—MuskokaParry Sound—Muskoka is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949....
, ON - Lawrence CannonLawrence CannonLawrence Cannon, PC is a Canadian politician from Quebec and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's former Quebec lieutenant. On October 30, 2008 he was sworn in as Minister of Foreign Affairs...
, Transport, Infrastructure and Communities: 5.0% over BQ in PontiacPontiac (electoral district)Pontiac is a federal electoral district in south-western Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1949 and since 1968....
, QC - Jim FlahertyJim FlahertyJames Michael "Jim" Flaherty, PC, MP is Canada's Minister of Finance and he has also served as Ontario's Minister of Finance. From 1995 until 2005, he was the Member of Provincial Parliament for Whitby—Ajax, and a member of the Progressive Conservative Party caucus...
, Finance: 5.7% over Lib in Whitby—OshawaWhitby—OshawaWhitby—Oshawa is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It has been represented in the House of Commons since 2006 by Jim Flaherty, the federal Minister of Finance.-History:...
, ON - Rob NicholsonRob NicholsonRobert Douglas "Rob" Nicholson, PC, QC, MP , is the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. He is a current member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Niagara Falls for the Conservative Party and the current Minister of Justice after serving for one year as...
, Justice: 5.9% over Lib in Niagara FallsNiagara Falls (electoral district)Niagara Falls is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.It consists of the city of Niagara Falls and the towns of Niagara-on-the-Lake and Fort Erie....
, ON - Peter MacKayPeter MacKayPeter Gordon MacKay, PC, QC, MP is a lawyer and politician from Nova Scotia, Canada. He is the Member of Parliament for Central Nova and currently serves as Minister of National Defence in the Cabinet of Canada....
, Defence and Atlantic Opportunities: 7.8% over NDP in Central NovaCentral NovaCentral Nova is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1968 to 1997 and since 2004. Its population in 2001 was 73,722....
, NS - John BairdJohn Baird (Canadian politician)John Russell Baird, PC, MP is a Canadian politician currently serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper....
, Environment: 9.0% over Lib in Ottawa West—NepeanOttawa West—NepeanOttawa West—Nepean is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2001 was 112,509.-Geography:...
, ON
Potential fall of government
On December 1, 2008, as the result of opposition dissatisfaction with the government's economic update (which failed to include stimulus measures to help the Canadian economy contend with the global crisis and included a 'poison pill' regarding the cessation of public party financing), the leaders of the Liberal Party, New Democratic Party, and Bloc Québécois announced they had reached an agreement to approach the governor generalGovernor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
for the purpose of forming a coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
. Combined, the three opposition parties constitute a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Parliament was due to vote on a no-confidence motion on December 8; if successful, the Liberals and NDP would have formally formed the coalition for 30 months, while the BQ pledged to support it for at least 18 months. Liberal leader Stéphane Dion would have become prime minister until the selection of his successor at the Liberal leadership convention in May 2009, and a coalition cabinet
Cabinet of Canada
The Cabinet of Canada is a body of ministers of the Crown that, along with the Canadian monarch, and within the tenets of the Westminster system, forms the government of Canada...
would have comprised 18 Liberal members (including a finance minister) and 6 NDP members. Governor General Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
had cut short a state visit
State visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a foreign head of state to another nation, at the invitation of that nation's head of state. State visits are the highest form of diplomatic contact between two nations, and are marked by ceremonial pomp and diplomatic protocol. In parliamentary democracies, heads...
to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
"in light of the current political situation in Canada."
On December 4, 2008, Jean granted Harper's request to prorogue
Prorogation in Canada
Prorogation is the end of a parliamentary session in the Parliament of Canada and the parliaments of its provinces and territories. It differs from a recess or adjournment, which do not end a session, and from a complete dissolution of parliament, which ends both the session and the entire...
Parliament until January 26, 2009, thereby staving off the prospect of an imminent change in government.
Opinion polls
Candidates by party
- Bloc Québécois candidates, 2008 Canadian federal election
- Christian Heritage Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal election
- Conservative Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal election
- Green Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal election
- Liberal Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal electionLiberal Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal electionThis is a list of nominated candidates for the Liberal Party of Canada in the 40th Canadian federal election.-Newfoundland and Labrador - 7 seats:-Prince Edward Island - 4 seats:-Nova Scotia - 11 seats:-New Brunswick - 10 seats:-Quebec - 75 seats:...
- New Democratic Party candidates, 2008 Canadian federal election
Conservatives
| Electoral District | Resigning incumbent | Succeeded by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | St. John's East St. John's East St. John's East is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949.... |
Norman Doyle Norman Doyle Norman E. Doyle, is a Canadian businessman and politician in Newfoundland and Labrador.Doyle was a member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1979 to 1993. He was a Conservative Party of Canada Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons. He represented the riding of... |
Jack Harris Jack Harris (politician) John James "Jack" Harris MP is a Canadian lawyer and politician from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Harris is the New Democratic Party Member of Parliament for St. John's East and is a former leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party... |
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| NL | St. John's South—Mount Pearl St. John's South—Mount Pearl St. John's South redirects here. For the provincial electoral district please see St. John's South St. John's South—Mount Pearl is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:Ethnic groups:... |
Loyola Hearn Loyola Hearn Loyola Hearn, PC is the Canadian Ambassador to Ireland. He served as a Member of the Canadian House of Commons from 2000 to 2008, and as Minister of Fisheries and Oceans from February 6, 2006 to October 30, 2008.... |
Siobhán Coady | ||
| ON | Thunder Bay—Superior North Thunder Bay—Superior North Thunder Bay—Superior North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1976.... |
Joe Comuzzi Joe Comuzzi Joseph Robert "Joe" Comuzzi, PC is a former Canadian politician.Comuzzi was born in Fort William, Ontario. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Windsor in 1954. In 1966, Comuzzi received the University of Windsor Alumni Award of Merit, the Alumni Association's most... |
Bruce Hyer Bruce Hyer Bruce Tolhurst Hyer is an American-born Canadian politician, who was first elected to represent the electoral district of Thunder Bay—Superior North in the 2008 Canadian federal election, and re-elected with a wider margin in the 2011 federal election... |
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| MB | Portage—Lisgar Portage—Lisgar Portage—Lisgar is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Demographics:-Geography:... |
Brian Pallister Brian Pallister Brian William Pallister is a Canadian politician. He represented the riding of Portage—Lisgar in the Canadian House of Commons from 2000 to 2008. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1992 to 1997, and was a cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon... |
Candice Hoeppner Candice Hoeppner Candice Hoeppner is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Portage—Lisgar in the 2008 and 2011 federal elections. She is a member of the Conservative Party.-Background:... |
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| SK | Palliser Palliser (Saskatchewan electoral district) Palliser is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.It is named in honour of John Palliser, a geographer and explorer of the Canadian west.-Geography:... |
Dave Batters Dave Batters David Batters was a Canadian politician.Born in Estevan, Saskatchewan, Batters was a member of the Conservative Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Palliser from 2004 to 2008... |
Ray Boughen Ray Boughen Ray Boughen is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Palliser in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party.-Background:... |
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| SK | Prince Albert Prince Albert (electoral district) Prince Albert is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1908 to 1988, and since 1997.-Geography:... |
Brian Fitzpatrick Brian Fitzpatrick Brian Fitzpatrick may refer to:*Brian T. Fitzpatrick, American academic and lawyer, Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University Law School*Brian Fitzpatrick *Brian Fitzpatrick... |
Randy Hoback Randy Hoback Randy C. Hoback in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Prince Albert in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| SK | Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:... |
Carol Skelton Carol Skelton Carol Skelton, PC is a Canadian politician. She is a member of the Security Intelligence Review Committee which oversees the operation of Canadian Security Intelligence Service... |
Kelly Block Kelly Block Kelly Block is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar in the 2008 Canadian federal election. She is a member of the Conservative Party. Block was appointed to the Procedure and House Affairs Committee and the Access to Information,... |
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| AB | Calgary Northeast Calgary Northeast Calgary Northeast is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. It is an urban riding in the city of Calgary.-History:... |
Art Hanger Art Hanger Arthur "Art" Hanger is a Canadian politician.Hanger is a former member of the Conservative Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, having represented the riding of Calgary Northeast since 1993 until his retirement in 2008. He has also been a member of the Reform Party of Canada , and the... |
Devinder Shory Devinder Shory Devinder Shory is is a Canadian politician, who represents the electoral district of Calgary Northeast as a federal Member of Parliament.... |
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| AB | Edmonton—St. Albert Edmonton—St. Albert Edmonton—St. Albert is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:The riding includes the city of St... |
John G. Williams John G. Williams John G. Williams was a Conservative MP representing Edmonton—St. Albert in the Canadian parliament from 1993 to 2008. He was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland... |
Brent Rathgeber Brent Rathgeber Brent Rathgeber is a lawyer and politician from Alberta, Canada. Formerly a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 2001 to 2004, he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 2008 federal election.-Political career:Rathgeber won election to the provincial electoral district of... |
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| AB | Edmonton—Sherwood Park Edmonton—Sherwood Park Edmonton—Sherwood Park is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Ken Epp Ken Epp Ken Epp is a Canadian politician.Epp was a member of the Conservative Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Edmonton—Sherwood Park since its creation in June 2004. He was previously the MP for Elk Island from 1993 to 2004... |
Tim Uppal Tim Uppal Tim Uppal, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected as a Member of Parliament for Edmonton—Sherwood Park in the 2008 federal election... |
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| AB | Medicine Hat Medicine Hat (electoral district) Medicine Hat is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1908. The riding covers the City of Medicine Hat and surrounding areas on the southeast side of Alberta – including Cypress County, Forty Mile County, the Municipal... |
Monte Solberg Monte Solberg Monte Kenton Solberg, PC is a former Canadian Member of Parliament, representing the riding of Medicine Hat in the Canadian House of Commons as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He was the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development... |
LaVar Payne LaVar Payne LaVar Payne is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Medicine Hat in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| AB | Red Deer Red Deer (electoral district) Red Deer is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1908.-History:This riding was created in 1907 from Calgary and Strathcona ridings. At the time this was an overwhelmingly rural riding with only the then small town of Red... |
Bob Mills Bob Mills (politician) Robert Mills is a former Canadian federal politician.-Early life:Mills was born in Young, Saskatchewan but moved at the age of twelve to Saskatoon. He attended the University of Saskatchewan and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Science and with an Education diploma... |
Earl Dreeshen Earl Dreeshen Earl Dreeshen is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Red Deer in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party. Prior to becoming an MP he was a farmer and a teacher.-External links:*... |
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| AB | Wild Rose Wild Rose (electoral district) Wild Rose is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. It had been called a safe seat for the Conservative Party of Canada.- Geography :... |
Myron Thompson Myron Thompson Myron Thompson is a former Conservative Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons. He represented the riding of Wild Rose in Alberta.... |
Blake Richards Blake Richards Blake Richards is a Canadian politician, who was first elected to represent the electoral district of Wild Rose in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| BC | Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Betty Hinton Betty Hinton Betty Zane Hinton is a Canadian politician, previously representing the constituency of Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo in the federal parliament.... |
Cathy McLeod Cathy McLeod Cathy McLeod is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| BC | Vancouver Kingsway Vancouver Kingsway Vancouver Kingsway is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1953 to 1988 and since 1997. It is located in Vancouver.-Demographics:... |
David Emerson David Emerson David Lee Emerson, PC, OBC is a Canadian politician, businessman and civil servant.Emerson is a former Member of Parliament for the riding of Vancouver Kingsway. He was first elected as a Liberal and served as Minister of Industry under Prime Minister Paul Martin... |
Don Davies Don Davies Don Davies MP is a Canadian Member of Parliament for the New Democratic Party, representing the riding of Vancouver Kingsway. He is also Canada's official opposition Critic for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism.... |
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Liberals
| Electoral District | Resigning incumbent | Succeeded by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | Random—Burin—St. George's Random—Burin—St. George's Random—Burin—St. George's is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 94.7% White, 4.8% Native Canadian... |
Bill Matthews Bill Matthews William "Bill" Matthews is a Canadian politician.Matthews was a Progressive Conservative member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1982 to 1996... |
Judy Foote Judy Foote Judy Foote is a Canadian politician from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. She represented the electoral district of Grand Bank in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1996 to 2007 as a member of the Liberal Party. Foote has been the Liberal Member of Parliament for the riding of... |
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| PEI | Egmont Egmont (electoral district) Egmont is a federal electoral district in Prince Edward Island, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. Its population in 2001 was 35,208.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 98.0% White, 1.4% Native Canadian... |
Joe McGuire Joe McGuire Joseph Blair "Joe" McGuire, PC, MP is a retired Canadian politician. He was a Member of Parliament representing the Liberals in the House of Commons for the riding of Egmont in Prince Edward Island. He was first elected in 1988, and re-elected in 1993, 1997, 2000, 2004, and the recent 2006 election... |
Gail Shea Gail Shea Gail Shea, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, currently the Member of Parliament for Egmont. She was previously a member of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 2000 to 2007, representing the electoral district of Tignish-DeBlois as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party.As... |
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| NB | Fredericton Fredericton (electoral district) Fredericton is a federal electoral district in New Brunswick, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2001 was 82,782... |
Andy Scott | Keith Ashfield Keith Ashfield Keith Ashfield, PC, MP is a Canadian politician. He is the MP for the electoral district of Fredericton, and was appointed Minister of State in the Cabinet of Canada afterwards... |
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| QC | LaSalle—Émard LaSalle—Émard LaSalle—Émard is a federal electoral district in the Canadian province of Quebec that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2001 was 99,767. It is represented by New Democrat Hélène LeBlanc... |
Paul Martin Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.... |
Lise Zarac Lise Zarac Lise Zarac is a Canadian politician, who represented the Quebec electoral district of LaSalle—Émard from 2008 until 2011. She is a member of the Liberal Party.-External links:*... |
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| ON | Brampton West Brampton West Brampton West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population was 170,422 in 2006- making it the most populous riding in Canada.... |
Colleen Beaumier Colleen Beaumier Colleen Beaumier is a Canadian politician, who served in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal Member of Parliament from 1993 to 2008.-Pre-politics:... |
Andrew Kania Andrew Kania Andrew Kania was a Canadian Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Brampton West, in Ontario. Kania was elected in the 2008 Canadian federal election, winning as the Liberal Party candidate in the riding vacated by Liberal Colleen Beaumier.Kania was a member of the Standing Committee... |
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| ON | Etobicoke North Etobicoke North Etobicoke North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979. It covers Rexdale, the northern part of Etobicoke, which is part of Toronto.... |
Roy Cullen Roy Cullen For the Texas businessman, see Hugh Roy Cullen.Roy Cullen, PC, MP was a Liberal MP for the riding of Etobicoke North in the Canadian House of Commons.-Background:... |
Kirsty Duncan Kirsty Duncan Kirsty Ellen Duncan is a Canadian politician and medical geographer from Ontario, Canada. Duncan is the Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party of Canada in the Toronto riding of Etobicoke North... |
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| ON | Huron—Bruce Huron—Bruce Huron—Bruce is a federalelectoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.-History:... |
Paul Steckle Paul Steckle Paul Daniel Steckle is a former Canadian Member of Parliament for Huron—Bruce and a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. - Political positions :... |
Ben Lobb Ben Lobb Benjamin T. Lobb is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Huron—Bruce in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party.-External links:*... |
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| ON | Newmarket—Aurora Newmarket—Aurora Newmarket—Aurora is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.The district contains the towns of Newmarket and Aurora.... |
Belinda Stronach Belinda Stronach Belinda Caroline Stronach, PC is a Canadian businessperson, philanthropist and former politician. She was a Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008. Originally elected as a Conservative, she later crossed the floor to join the Liberals... |
Lois Brown Lois Brown Lois Brown is a Canadian businesswoman and politician, currently the elected Member of Parliament for Newmarket—Aurora... |
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| ON | Nickel Belt Nickel Belt Nickel Belt is one of two federal electoral districts serving the Greater City of Sudbury.Nickel Belt has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.It consists of:... |
Raymond Bonin Raymond Bonin Raymond C. "Ray" Bonin is a Canadian politician.Born in Sudbury, Ontario, Bonin was a Liberal member of the Canadian House of Commons representing the riding of Nickel Belt, representing the riding from 1993 to 2008. Prior to entering politics, he was a professor at Sudbury's Cambrian College... |
Claude Gravelle Claude Gravelle Claude Gravelle is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Nickel Belt in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the New Democratic Party.... |
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| ON | Scarborough Southwest Scarborough Southwest Scarborough Southwest is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons.On Toronto City Council, the southeast portion is represented by Gary Crawford. The northwest section is represented by Michelle Berardinetti.-Geography:It covers the... |
Tom Wappel Tom Wappel Thomas William "Tom" Wappel is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal member of the House of Commons from 1988 to 2008, representing the Toronto riding of Scarborough West and its successor riding of Scarborough Southwest. He did not seek re-election in the 2008 general election.Wappel is a... |
Michelle Simson Michelle Simson Michelle Simson, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the Ontario electoral district of Scarborough Southwest in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| NU | Nunavut Nunavut (electoral district) Nunavut is a federal electoral district in Nunavut, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Nunatsiaq, its predecessor that covered the same area, was a federal electoral district in Northwest Territories, that was represented in the House of Commons from 1979... |
Nancy Karetak-Lindell Nancy Karetak-Lindell Nancy Karetak-Lindell is a former Canadian politician. Previously she was a financial comptroller and municipal councillor in Arviat, Karetak-Lindell ran for a seat in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal candidate in the 1997 federal election in the riding of Nunavut... |
Leona Aglukkaq Leona Aglukkaq Leona Aglukkaq, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Canadian House of Commons as a Conservative in the 2008 Canadian federal election for the riding of Nunavut.... |
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Bloc Québécois
| Electoral District | Resigning incumbent | Succeeded by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QC | Drummond Drummond (electoral district) Drummond is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.It was created in 1966 from Drummond—Arthabaska, Nicolet—Yamaska and Richmond—Wolfe.-Geography:... |
Pauline Picard Pauline Picard Pauline Picard was a Quebec politician. She was the Bloc Québécois Member of Parliament for the riding of Drummond from 1993 to 2008.... |
Roger Pomerleau Roger Pomerleau Roger Pomerleau is a Canadian politician and carpenter. He served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1993 to 1997 and again from 2008 to 2011.... |
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| QC | Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Caroline St-Hilaire Caroline St-Hilaire Caroline St-Hilaire is a Canadian politician, currently serving as Mayor of Longueuil under the banner of Action Longueuil as of 10 November 2009... |
Jean Dorion Jean Dorion Jean Dorion is a Canadian politician, sociologist and a Quebec nationalist leader. He is the current President of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society of Montreal , a post he held also from 1989 to 1994. He is additionally the treasurer of the affiliated Mouvement national des Québécoises et des... |
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| QC | Repentigny Repentigny (electoral district) Repentigny is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.It consists solely and entirely of the Regional County Municipality of L'Assomption.-Demographics:... |
Raymond Gravel Raymond Gravel Raymond Gravel is a Catholic priest from the Canadian province of Quebec, who was formerly the Member of Parliament for the riding of Repentigny, as a member of the Bloc Québécois... |
Nicolas Dufour Nicolas Dufour Nicolas Dufour is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Repentigny in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois.... |
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| QC | Rivière-des-Mille-Îles Rivière-des-Mille-Îles (electoral district) Rivière-des-Mille-Îles is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:... |
Gilles Perron | Luc Desnoyers Luc Desnoyers Luc Desnoyers is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois.-External links:... |
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New Democrats
| Electoral District | Resigning incumbent | Succeeded by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NS | Halifax Halifax (electoral district) Halifax is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1867.Since October 14, 2008, its Member of the Parliament has been Megan Leslie of the New Democratic Party.... |
Alexa McDonough Alexa McDonough Alexa Ann Shaw McDonough OC is a Canadian politician who became the first woman to lead a major, recognized political party in Canada, when she was elected the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party's leader in 1980... |
Megan Leslie Megan Leslie Megan Leslie is a Canadian politician, who has been the federal Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Halifax since the 2008 Canadian federal election. She is a member of the New Democratic Party and serves as the NDP critic for the environment... |
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| MB | Elmwood—Transcona Elmwood—Transcona Elmwood—Transcona is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2006 was 78,700.... |
Bill Blaikie Bill Blaikie William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie, PC is a Canadian politician. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba since April 2009, representing the Winnipeg division of Elmwood as a member of the New Democratic Party of Manitoba, and Minister of Conservation and Government House Leader... |
Jim Maloway Jim Maloway Peter James "Jim" Maloway is a Canadian politician. He was elected to the Canadian House of Commons for the Winnipeg division of Elmwood—Transcona in the 2008 federal election as a member of the New Democratic Party. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1986 to 2008,... |
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| BC | Surrey North Surrey North Surrey North is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. It covers the northern part of Surrey.... |
Penny Priddy Penny Priddy Penny Priddy is a politician from British Columbia, Canada. Originally a nurse, she moved from Ontario to Surrey in 1981 where she worked as a nursing educator... |
Dona Cadman Dona Cadman Dona Cadman is a Canadian politician, who represented the electoral district of Surrey North in the Canadian House of Commons from 2008 to 2011, as well as the widow of Chuck Cadman, a former Member of Parliament for the same district. She served in the Conservative Party of Canada... |
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Vacancies upon dissolution
By-elections in progress in four vacant ridings were cancelled when the general election was called.| Electoral District | Previous MP | New MP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QC | Saint-Lambert Saint-Lambert (electoral district) Saint-Lambert is a federal electoral district in the Canadian province of Quebec. It has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2006 was 94,541.-Geography:... |
Maka Kotto Maka Kotto Maka Kotto , is a provincial level politician from Quebec, Canada and a former member of the Canadian House of Commons. He is the husband of Longueuil mayor Caroline St-Hilaire. He is also a published author and has appeared in film... |
Josée Beaudin Josée Beaudin Josée Beaudin is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the electoral district of Saint-Lambert in the 2008 Canadian federal election. She is a member of the Bloc Québécois.-External links:... |
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| QC | Westmount—Ville-Marie Westmount—Ville-Marie Westmount—Ville-Marie is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2001 was 97,226.-Geography:... |
Lucienne Robillard Lucienne Robillard Lucienne Robillard, PC is a Canadian politician and a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. She sat in the Canadian House of Commons as the Member of Parliament for the riding of Westmount—Ville-Marie in Montreal.... |
Marc Garneau Marc Garneau Joseph Jean-Pierre Marc Garneau, CC CD FCASI MP is a Canadian retired military officer, former astronaut, engineer and politician.Garneau was the first Canadian in space taking part in three flights aboard NASA Space shuttles... |
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| ON | Don Valley West Don Valley West Don Valley West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979. Its population in 2001 was 115,539.... |
John Godfrey John Godfrey John Ferguson Godfrey, PC is a Canadian educator, journalist and former Member of Parliament.- Education :He was born in Toronto, Ontario. His father, Senator John Morrow Godfrey , was a Canadian pilot, lawyer and politician. John Godfrey graduated from Upper Canada College in 1960... |
Rob Oliphant Rob Oliphant Robert "Rob" Oliphant is a Canadian politician and a United Church minister. He served in the House of Commons as a Liberal Member of Parliament for the Toronto riding of Don Valley West from 2008 to 2011.- Personal life :... |
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| ON | Guelph Guelph (electoral district) Guelph is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1979 to 1988 and has been since 2004.The riding's parliamentary seat is held by Liberal MP Frank Valeriote.-History:... |
Brenda Chamberlain Brenda Chamberlain Brenda Kay Chamberlain, PC was a member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Guelph for the Liberal Party from 1993 until her resignation as of April, 2008.... |
Frank Valeriote Frank Valeriote Frank Valeriote is a Canadian politician. He is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the riding of Guelph.-Background:... |
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Conservatives
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL | Avalon Avalon (electoral district) Avalon is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: Languages:² Unemployment: 25.9%... |
Fabian Manning Fabian Manning Fabian Manning is a politician in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Manning served as a Progressive Conservative and later as the independent Member of the House of Assembly for the district of Placentia and St. Mary’s from 1999 to 2005. From 2006 to 2008 he was the Conservative Party of Canada... |
Scott Andrews Scott Andrews (politician) Scott Andrews is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the Newfoundland and Labrador electoral district of Avalon in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Liberal Party... |
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| QC | Louis-Hébert | Luc Harvey Luc Harvey Luc Harvey was a Canadian politician and the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Louis-Hébert in Quebec from 2006 to 2008. In 2006, he ran for office as a member of the Conservative Party against Bloc Québécois politician Roger Clavet and won with 34.22% of the vote, defeating Clavet by... |
Pascal-Pierre Paillé Pascal-Pierre Paillé Pascal-Pierre Paillé is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Louis-Hébert in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| ON | Mississauga—Streetsville Mississauga—Streetsville Mississauga—Streetsville is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Wajid Khan Wajid Khan Wajid Ali Khan is a Canadian businessman and politician. Until 2008, he was a member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Mississauga—Streetsville as a Conservative Member of Parliament.-Early life:Khan served as an officer and a pilot in the Pakistan Air Force from 1966 to... |
Bonnie Crombie Bonnie Crombie Bonnie Crombie is a Canadian politician. Formerly a Liberal Party Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Mississauga—Streetsville, in Ontario, she was elected to Mississauga City Council in a by-election in September 2011.... |
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| AB | Edmonton—Strathcona Edmonton—Strathcona Edmonton—Strathcona is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953. It spans the south central part of the city of Edmonton.-Geography:... |
Rahim Jaffer Rahim Jaffer Rahim Nizar Jaffer is a former Canadian politician and a former Member of Parliament. He served in the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2008, representing the Alberta riding of Edmonton—Strathcona as a member of the Conservative Party. He was the first Muslim elected to the Canadian Parliament... |
Linda Duncan Linda Duncan Linda Francis Duncan is a Canadian lawyer and politician, currently serving as a Member of Parliament for the riding of Edmonton—Strathcona in Alberta. She is a member of the New Democratic Party and, since 2008, she has been the only MP from an Alberta riding not a member of the Conservative Party... |
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Liberals
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NS | West Nova West Nova West Nova is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.... |
Robert Thibault Robert Thibault Robert G. Thibault, PC is a Canadian politician.Thibault is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada and a former member in the Canadian House of Commons, serving three terms as the representative of West Nova from 2000 to 2008. He served as a municipal councillor in Clare, Nova Scotia from 1988 to... |
Greg Kerr Greg Kerr Greg J. Kerr is a politician from Nova Scotia, Canada. He was elected as the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the electoral district of West Nova in the 2008 federal election. He is currently the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs.-Biography:He graduated from... |
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| NB | Miramichi Miramichi (electoral district) Northumberland was a federal electoral district in New Brunswick, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1988. It was replaced by Miramichi riding, which has been represented in the House of Commons since 1988... |
Charles Hubbard Charles Hubbard Charles Isaac Hubbard, PC, CD is a Canadian politician.Hubbard is a current member of the Liberal Party of Canada He is a former member of the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Miramichi, New Brunswick from 1993 to 2008. Hubbard is a former school principal... |
Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Tilly O'Neill-Gordon is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the New Brunswick electoral district of Miramichi in the 2008 Canadian federal election. She is a member of the Conservative Party.-Biography:... |
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| NB | Saint John Saint John (electoral district) Saint John is a federal electoral district in southern New Brunswick, Canada. With its predecessor ridings, St. John—Albert and Saint John—Lancaster, the area has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1917... |
Paul Zed Paul Zed Paul Zed is a Canadian lawyer, professor, and politician.Paul Zed was born in Toronto on December 31, 1956 and received his early education from local Saint John, NB schools, graduating from St... |
Rodney Weston Rodney Weston Rodney H. Weston is a businessman and politician in New Brunswick, Canada. He is the current Member of Parliament for Saint John... |
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| ON | Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Brent St. Denis Brent St. Denis Brent J. St. Denis is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2008, originally representing Algoma and later its successor ridings of Algoma—Manitoulin and Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing.St... |
Carol Hughes Carol Hughes Carol Hughes is a Canadian politician, who has represented the electoral district of Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing in the Canadian House of Commons since 2008. She is a member of the New Democratic Party.... |
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| ON | Brant Brant (electoral district) Brant is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1949 and since 1968.The federal riding was created in 1903. It consisted of Brant County excluding Brantford.... |
Lloyd St. Amand Lloyd St. Amand Lloyd St. Amand is a Canadian politician and a former Member of Parliament for the riding of Brant. He is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.... |
Phil McColeman Phil McColeman Phil McColeman is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Brant in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party.-External links:*... |
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| ON | Halton Halton (electoral district) Halton is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1988 and again since 1997. Its population in 2001 was 100,055.-Geography:... |
Garth Turner Garth Turner John Garth Turner, PC is a Canadian business journalist, best-selling author, entrepreneur, broadcaster, financial advisor and politician, twice elected as a Member of the House of Commons, former Minister of National Revenue and leadership candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada... |
Lisa Raitt Lisa Raitt Lisa Raitt, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, who is the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the riding of Halton. She is the current Minister of Labour in the Cabinet of Canada.-Background:... |
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| ON | Kenora Kenora (electoral district) Kenora is a federal and former provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004, and was represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from the early twentieth century.... |
Roger Valley Roger Valley Roger Valley is a Canadian politician. He was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008, representing the riding of Kenora for the Liberal Party.... |
Greg Rickford Greg Rickford Greg Rickford is a Canadian politician. Rickford was elected to represent the Ontario electoral district of Kenora in the 2008 Canadian federal election.... |
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| ON | Kitchener Centre Kitchener Centre Kitchener Centre is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Political geography:... |
Karen Redman Karen Redman Karen Redman, PC is a Canadian politician. She was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2008, representing the riding of Kitchener Centre for the Liberal Party. She served as Chief Government Whip in the 2004-05 Parliament, and was the Chief Official Opposition Whip in the... |
Stephen Woodworth Stephen Woodworth (politician) Stephen Woodworth is a Canadian politician. He represents the electoral district of Kitchener Centre in the Canadian House of Commons for the Conservative Party of Canada.... |
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| ON | Kitchener—Waterloo | Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi Andrew Telegdi, PC is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2008, representing Waterloo and the successor riding of Kitchener—Waterloo.... |
Peter Braid Peter Braid Peter Braid is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the electoral district of Kitchener—Waterloo in the 2008 Canadian federal election, defeating incumbent Andrew Telegdi by a margin of 17 votes. He is a member of the Conservative Party... |
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| ON | London West London West London West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. Its population in 2006 was 118,335.-Geography:The district includes the northwest part of the City of London.... |
Sue Barnes Sue Barnes Susan "Sue" Barnes, PC, MP is a Canadian politician. Barnes is currently a member of the Liberal Party of Canada and was in the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of London West from 1993 to 2008.... |
Ed Holder Ed Holder Edwin A. Holder is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of London West in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party.-Electoral record:... |
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| ON | Mississauga—Erindale Mississauga—Erindale Mississauga—Erindale is a federalelectoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It was created in 2003 from parts of Mississauga Centre and Mississauga West ridings.... |
Omar Alghabra Omar Alghabra Omar Alghabra is a Canadian politician, who represented the riding of Mississauga—Erindale in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008.Alghabra graduated from Ryerson University with a degree in engineering and in 2000 received his Master of Business Administration from York University.He... |
Bob Dechert Bob Dechert Robert "Bob" Dechert is a Canadian politician and lawyer. He represents the electoral district of Mississauga—Erindale in the House of Commons of Canada. He is a member of the Conservative Party.-Political history:... |
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| ON | Oak Ridges—Markham Oak Ridges—Markham Oak Ridges—Markham is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population in 2006 was 169,645., with 136,755 electors, the highest of any riding in Canada... |
Lui Temelkovski Lui Temelkovski Lubomir "Lui" Temelkovski is a Canadian federal politician. He was the Member of Parliament for the riding of Oak Ridges—Markham in Ontario, representing the Liberal Party of Canada. He was first elected in the 2004 federal election and was re-elected in the 2006 election... |
Paul Calandra Paul Calandra Paul Calandra is a Canadian politician. He was elected to represent the electoral district of Oak Ridges—Markham in the 2008 Canadian federal election... |
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| ON | Oakville Oakville (electoral district) Oakville is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-History:It was created in 1996 from parts of Halton and Oakville—Milton ridings.... |
Bonnie Brown | Terence Young Terence Young (politician) Terence Young is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was elected for the riding of Oakville in the 2008 federal election, as a Conservative candidate. Previously, Young was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario between 1995 and 1999.-Early years:Young was the... |
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| ON | Sudbury Sudbury (electoral district) Sudbury is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949.Its population in 2001 was 89,443. The district is one of two serving the city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario.... |
Diane Marleau Diane Marleau Diane Marleau, PC, MP is a Canadian politician. She represented the riding of Sudbury in the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 to 2008, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Jean Chrétien... |
Glenn Thibeault Glenn Thibeault Glenn Thibeault is a Canadian politician. Since 2008, he has represented the Ontario electoral district of Sudbury in the Canadian House of Commons... |
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| ON | Thornhill Thornhill (electoral district) Thornhill is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.It covers the community of Thornhill, Ontario, which is made up of portions of Vaughan and Markham, and was created in 1996 from parts of... |
Susan Kadis Susan Kadis Susan R. Kadis is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She was the Liberal Member of Parliament for Thornhill in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008.-Background:... |
Peter Kent Peter Kent Peter Kent, PC, MP is a Conservative member of parliament for the riding of Thornhill, and the current Minister of the Environment in the 28th Canadian Ministry.Previously, he was Deputy Editor of Global Television, a Canadian TV network... |
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| ON | Thunder Bay—Rainy River Thunder Bay—Rainy River Thunder Bay—Rainy River is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004... |
Ken Boshcoff Ken Boshcoff Ken Boshcoff is a Canadian politician. He was born in Fort William, Ontario. He served as mayor of Thunder Bay, Ontario from 1997 to 2003, during which he established Thunder Bay as the "Martial Arts Capital of Canada". He also had a role in establishing the Northern Ontario School of Medicine,... |
John Rafferty | ||
| ON | Welland Welland (electoral district) Welland is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1988, and since 2004. Its population in 2006 was 112,875.... |
John Maloney | Malcolm Allen Malcolm Allen (politician) Malcolm Allen is a Canadian politician. He has represented the riding of Welland in the Canadian House of Commons since 2008 as a member of the New Democratic Party... |
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| MB | Churchill Churchill (electoral district) Churchill is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1935. It covers northern Manitoba, a vast wilderness area dotted with small municipalities and First Nations reserves... |
Tina Keeper Tina Keeper Tina Keeper, OM , is a Cree activist, producer, former actress and former member of the Canadian House of Commons.Keeper is best known for her role as RCMP officer Michelle Kenidi in the CBC Television series North of 60, about the fictional aboriginal community of Lynx River. She also hosted a... |
Niki Ashton Niki Ashton Niki Christina Ashton is the New Democratic Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Churchill in Manitoba, Canada. She was first elected in the 2008 federal election.... |
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| MB | Saint Boniface Saint Boniface (electoral district) Saint Boniface is a federal electoral district that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1925. It is located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.In 1996, its English name was changed from "St. Boniface" to "Saint Boniface".... |
Raymond Simard Raymond Simard Raymond Simard, PC is a politician from Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 2002 to 2008, representing the riding of Saint Boniface for the Liberal Party of Canada.... |
Shelly Glover Shelly Glover Shelly A. Glover is a Canadian politician, and is currently the Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Saint Boniface, Manitoba. She is a member of the Conservative Party and is the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance.Glover won the riding in the 2008 federal election,... |
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| BC | Richmond | Raymond Chan Raymond Chan Raymond Chan, PC , is the first Chinese Canadian to be appointed to the Cabinet of Canada. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, Chan was elected to Parliament in the 1993 federal election, defeating then Defence Minister Tom Siddon in the riding of Richmond, British Columbia... |
Alice Wong Alice Wong Alice Siu-Ping Chan Wong, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Richmond. She is a member of the Conservative Party and formerly served as the Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism... |
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| BC | North Vancouver North Vancouver (electoral district) North Vancouver is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.-Demographics:-Geography:... |
Don Bell Don Bell For the American radio broadcaster, see Don Bell Donald H. Bell, MP is a Canadian politician. He represented the riding of North Vancouver in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008 as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada... |
Andrew Saxton Andrew Saxton Andrew Saxton is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of North Vancouver in the 2008 Canadian federal election and re-elected in 2011... |
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New Democrats
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ON | Parkdale—High Park Parkdale—High Park Parkdale—High Park is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979.Peggy Nash of the New Democratic Party was elected the Member of Parliament for the riding on May 2, 2011.... |
Peggy Nash Peggy Nash Peggy A. Nash is a Canadian labour official and politician from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is the New Democratic Party Member of Parliament for the Parkdale—High Park electoral district in Toronto, and was the Official Opposition's Finance Critic, in Canada's 41st parliament... |
Gerard Kennedy Gerard Kennedy Gerard Michael Kennedy is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as Ontario's Minister of Education from 2003 to 2006, when he resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada... |
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| BC | Vancouver Island North Vancouver Island North Vancouver Island North is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:... |
Catherine Bell Catherine J. Bell Catherine J. Bell, is a trade unionist and politician in British Columbia, Canada. She was elected as the New Democratic Party's candidate in the 2006 federal election in the riding of Vancouver Island North, serving for one term... |
John Duncan John Duncan (Canadian politician) John Morris Duncan, PC, MP, is a Canadian politician sitting as a member of the Canadian Parliament from 1993 to January 2006 and again from October 2008... |
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Bloc Québécois
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QC | Brossard—La Prairie Brossard—La Prairie Brossard—La Prairie is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997. Its population in 2006 was 113,985.-Geography:... |
Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier Marcel Lussier is a Canadian politician and the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Brossard—La Prairie. He ran for office as a member of the Bloc Québécois in the 2004 election, but was defeated by Jacques Saada. In the 2006 election he ran again, defeating Saada by approximately two... |
Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès Alexandra Mendès is a Canadian politician. She was elected in the 2008 election as the federal Liberal MP for the Montreal riding of Brossard—La Prairie, defeating Marcel Lussier... |
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| QC | Papineau Papineau -People:*Joseph Papineau, a 19th century Quebec politician*Louis-Joseph Papineau, son of Joseph Papineau, also a 19th century Quebec politician; headed the 1837 rebellions against the British government in Canada... |
Vivian Barbot Vivian Barbot Vivian Barbot is a teacher, activist, and politician. She is a former President of the Fédération des femmes du Québec, a former Member of Parliament and currently serves as interim president of the Bloc Québécois.... |
Justin Trudeau Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau, MP is a Canadian politician. He has represented the Montreal electoral division of Papineau in the Canadian House of Commons since 2008 as a member of the Liberal Party and currently serves as the party's critic for youth, post-secondary education, and amateur... |
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Greens
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BC | West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Geography:... |
Blair Wilson Blair Wilson Blair Wilson was the Canadian Member of Parliament in the 39th Canadian parliament for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country electoral district. He was elected on January 23, 2006 in the 2006 federal election as the Liberal candidate... |
John Weston John Weston (politician) John Weston, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Conservative Party.... |
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Independents
| Electoral District | Incumbent | Defeated by | |||
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| QC | Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:... |
Louise Thibault Louise Thibault Louise Thibault is a Canadian politician. Briefly a city councillor in Bic in 2003, she was elected into the Canadian House of Commons in the Canadian federal election, 2004 for the Bloc Québécois in the riding of Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques... |
Claude Guimond Claude Guimond Claude Guimond is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois.-External links:... |
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See also
- List of Canadian federal general elections
- List of political parties in Canada
- Federal political financing in CanadaFederal political financing in CanadaThe fair and transparent financing of political parties, candidates, and election campaigns is a key determinant in the health and proper functioning of a democracy...
- Voter turnout in CanadaVoter turnout in CanadaVoter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election. The following presents voter turnout figures for Canada's general elections as compiled by Elections Canada....
Projections and predictions
- DemocraticSPACE Seat Projections
- Election Prediction Project
- Trendlines Research Daily chart tracking of average of 11 Riding Projection models
- Paulitics 2008 Election Seat Projection