History UsefulNotes / CanadianPolitics

A side effect of this system is a close similarity to the political systems of [[BritishPoliticalSystem Britain]], [[IrishPoliticalSystem Ireland]], [[UsefulNotes/AustralianPolitics Australia]], and [[IndianPoliticalSystem India]].

Provincial politics tends to also have the Conservatives, Liberals, and NDP as the primary parties, though there are exceptions -- the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan imploded in corruption scandals and was replaced by the Saskatchewan Party, the BC Liberal Party is in practice a merger between the Liberals and Conservatives, the most recent provincial election in Alberta has seen the rise of the ultra-conservative Wildrose party, and Quebec politics is [[MindScrew just plain weird]][[note]]It features the ''Parti Québécois'' (PQ), the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ), and the newly-formed ''Coalition Avenir Québec'' ([[FunWithAcronyms CAQ]]). The first is the separatist party, and is slightly left-leaning. The second is federalist, and is slightly right-leaning. The third is vaguely described as either centre-right (according to the media) or [[BlueAndOrangeMorality neither of the right or left]] (according to their own leadership). The newborn CAQ claims to eschew the entire federalism-separatism debate, and has lately been poaching voter support and [=MNAs=] from the Liberals, the PQ, and the defunct ADQ. One thing to note: Quebec is somewhat to the left of Canada in general, notably on social issues, and as such, the Quebec Liberal Party is very similar to the Federal Conservative Party; indeed, the current Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, rose to prominence as a Progressive Conservative minister under Bryan Mulroney -- and even became the leader of the party after the 1992 wipeout -- before becoming leader of the Quebec Liberals.[[/note]]. The NDP does frequently win in provincial elections, especially in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and BC. Alberta is also an interesting case -- having been a province since 1905, they have experienced only two changes of government, one during the Depression and one after popular premier Ernest Manning (father of Reform Party founder Preston Manning) resigned and whose successor had nary a fraction of his political skills. Since 1971, a string of Conservative leaders have [[CurbStompBattle won a majority in every election]], to the point where Alberta is routinely considered a one-party state, and it's [[SeriousBusiness only half a joke]].

As of this point, the Conservatives continue to hold majority government under Prime Minister Stephen Harper, though their caucus has been reduced by one member as one of their Alberta [=MPs=] is sitting as an independent while he faces a charge related to impaired driving. The NDP is still the Official Opposition, though they have been declining somewhat in opinion polls and have lost two [=MPs=] -- one being the deceased Jack Layton, while the other was a Quebec backbencher who crossed the floor to the Liberals several months after she was elected in 2011 (stating variously that she did not belong in the NDP and that Quebecers had voted for Layton, not the party itself). The Liberals are still the third party, though they have been bolstered by a strong performance from interim leader Bob Rae as well as the aforementioned floor-crossing. The four remaining Bloc [=MPs=] and Green Party leader Elizabeth May round out the House of Commons.

Provincial politics tends to also have the Conservatives, Liberals, and NDP as the primary parties, though there are exceptions -- the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan imploded in corruption scandals and was replaced by the Saskatchewan Party, the BC Liberal Party is in practice a merger between the Liberals and Conservatives, the most recent provincial election in Alberta has seen the rise of the ultra-conservative Wildrose party, and Quebec politics is [[MindScrew just plain weird]][[hottip:*:It features the ''Parti Québécois'' (PQ), the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ), and the newly-formed ''Coalition Avenir Québec'' ([[FunWithAcronyms CAQ]]). The first is the separatist party, and is slightly left-leaning. The second is federalist, and is slightly right-leaning. The third is vaguely described as either centre-right (according to the media) or [[BlueAndOrangeMorality neither of the right or left]] (according to their own leadership). The newborn CAQ claims to eschew the entire federalism-separatism debate, and has lately been poaching voter support and [=MNAs=] from the Liberals, the PQ, and the defunct ADQ. One thing to note: Quebec is somewhat to the left of Canada in general, notably on social issues, and as such, the Quebec Liberal Party is very similar to the Federal Conservative Party; indeed, the current Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, rose to prominence as a Progressive Conservative minister under Bryan Mulroney -- and even became the leader of the party after the 1992 wipeout -- before becoming leader of the Quebec Liberals.]]. The NDP does frequently win in provincial elections, especially in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and BC. Alberta is also an interesting case -- having been a province since 1905, they have experienced only two changes of government, one during the Depression and one after popular premier Ernest Manning (father of Reform Party founder Preston Manning) resigned and whose successor had nary a fraction of his political skills. Since 1971, a string of Conservative leaders have [[CurbStompBattle won a majority in every election]], to the point where Alberta is routinely considered a one-party state, and it's [[SeriousBusiness only half a joke]].

** An event in which the GG can become useful is when the Prime Minister starts to show signs of getting dictatorial; at which point, the Governor General (as the Commander-in-Chief) can order the army to forcibly depose the PM.

A side effect of this system is a close similarity to the political systems of [[BritishPoliticalSystem Britain]], [[IrishPoliticalSystem Ireland]], [[AustralianPolitics Australia]], and [[IndianPoliticalSystem India]].

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in [[WhamEpisode the 2011 federal election]]. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automated "robocalls" (and, in some cases, targeted live calls) to non-Conservative or ex-Conservative voters in a number of different ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting at all. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and since the scandal broke they have accumulated over ''[[UpToEleven 31,000 reports]]'' of similar calls from across Canada. In the most high-profile case, in the riding of Guelph in Ontario, Elections Canada has traced at least some of the calls to a subsidiary of an automated calling company in Edmonton, which in turn was contacted both by the Guelph Conservative campaign as well as a disposable mobile phone registered under the alias "Pierre Poutine" of "Separatist Street" in Joliette, Quebec. In another riding where voter suppression tactics have been alleged, the Conservatives won by a mere ''18 votes'' -- and this was far from the only close riding across the country, potentially making the difference between a majority and minority government.

Provincial politics tends to also have the Conservatives, Liberals, and NDP as the primary parties, though there are exceptions -- the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan imploded in corruption scandals and was replaced by the Saskatchewan Party, the BC Liberal Party is in practice a merger between the Liberals and Conservatives, and Quebec politics is [[MindScrew just plain weird]][[hottip:*:It features the ''Parti Québécois'' (PQ), the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ), and the newly-formed ''Coalition Avenir Québec'' ([[FunWithAcronyms CAQ]]). The first is the separatist party, and is slightly left-leaning. The second is federalist, and is slightly right-leaning. The third is vaguely described as either centre-right (according to the media) or [[BlueAndOrangeMorality neither of the right or left]] (according to their own leadership). The newborn CAQ claims to eschew the entire federalism-separatism debate, and has lately been poaching voter support and [=MNAs=] from the Liberals, the PQ, and the defunct ADQ. One thing to note: Quebec is somewhat to the left of Canada in general, notably on social issues, and as such, the Quebec Liberal Party is very similar to the Federal Conservative Party; indeed, the current Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, rose to prominence as a Progressive Conservative minister under Bryan Mulroney -- and even became the leader of the party after the 1992 wipeout -- before becoming leader of the Quebec Liberals.]]. The NDP does frequently win in provincial elections, especially in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and BC. Alberta is also an interesting case -- having been a province since 1905, they have experienced only two changes of government, one during the Depression and one after popular premier Ernest Manning (father of Reform Party founder Preston Manning) resigned and whose successor had nary a fraction of his political skills. Since 1971, a string of Conservative leaders have [[CurbStompBattle won a majority in every election]], to the point where Alberta is routinely considered a one-party state, and it's [[SeriousBusiness only half a joke]].

[[ItGotWorse As if that wasn't enough drama for one year]], NDP leader Jack Layton, whose popularity played a significant role in the NDP's newfound success, died of cancer a few months following the election. Nycole Turmel is the interim party leader, and a leadership convention will be held in March 2012. Since the NDP has never previously held Official Opposition status, the current leadership race is facing greater scrutiny than ever before, primarily due to the fact that the NDP could plausibly be selecting an individual who may become the country's next Prime Minister.

* The Supreme Court consists of nine justices, appointed for life. Three are from Quebec, six are from the rest of Canada, because Quebec law is structured differently than [[TheCommonLaw the English-derived systems]]. By convention, three of the other six are from Ontario, two from the West, and one from the Atlantic provinces.

In federal politics, the three major parties are the moderate/right-wing Conservatives ("Tories"), the moderate Liberals ("Grits"), and the leftist/social democratic New Democratic Party. Historically, the Liberals and Conservatives have been the two major parties and the only ones to govern, although both have suffered periods of electoral collapse (the Conservatives from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s; the Liberals currently). The NDP was until recently [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg a perpetual third (or fourth) party]], but has been an important force in Canadian politics, propping up minority Liberal governments in 1972-74 and 2006 and frequently raising policy concerns that were taken forward by Liberal governments. The Green Party, while still small compared to the big three, is increasing in visibility and mainstream support and won its first seat in the 2011 election. There are many other smaller parties (e.g. Marijuana Party, Communist Party), and a few frivolous yet funny ones (e.g. the Rhinoceros Party).

As of the 2011 election, the Conservatives are in power with a majority government led by PM Stephen Harper, and the NDP are, for the first time in their history, the official opposition.

A thing of note for American readers: the Canadian political centre (as used to described parties here) is to the left of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem the American center]]. Canadian conservatives might be right-leaning "Blue Dog" Democrats or moderate "Rockefeller Republicans" in the US, while the Liberals' politics are closer to those of the left wing of the Democrats (i.e. Nancy Pelosi). The NDP are to the left of anything mainstream in US politics (a few prominent names on the extreme left, such as Bernie Sanders or Dennis Kucinich, would probably be considered moderates within the party).

The 2011 election [[WhamEpisode saw a historic shake-up in Canadian politics]], and how enduring it will be remains to be seen. The NDP, largely by gaining major support in Quebec -- where they had never before been a contender -- gained a third of the seats in Parliament and [[DidntSeeThatComing became the Official Opposition for the first time in their history]]. This development was also responsible for the demise of the Bloc Quebecois, who fell from dominance in Quebec to [[VestigialEmpire only four seats]], [[HumiliationConga not enough to qualify them as an official party]]. The Liberals, for the first time in ''their'' history, [[MyGreatestFailure fell to third-party status]]. The Conservatives, for [[BackFromTheDead the first time since the 1980s]], won a majority government. Finally, the Green Party won its first-ever seat in Parliament, with its leader Elizabeth May being elected in a BC riding. The current situation is more polarizing than ever before, as the NDP is further to the proverbial "left" than the Liberals on most issues, and the current Reform-derived Conservatives are further right than the Progressive Conservative party that preceded them.

Of note is the fact that practicing Muslim Naheed Nenshi was elected Mayor of Calgary in October 2010, a first in Canadian cities and only the second in North America (after Mohammed Hameeduddin of Teaneck, New Jersey). This is of particular importance as Calgary located in Southern Alberta, which is one of the most conservative part of the country.

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in the 2011 federal election. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automatic "robocalls" to non-Conservative voters in swing ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and has traced them to an automated calling company in {{Edmonton}}, among others. The opposition NDP and Liberals have [[StatusQuoIsGod (rather predictably) reacted with outrage,]] while the Conservatives have naturally denied any responsibility, though one of their bottom-rung staffers has resigned from the office of one of their [=MPs=] in Ontario.

In federal politics, the three major parties are the moderate/right-wing Conservatives or "Tories", the moderate Liberals ("Grits"), and the leftist/social democratic New Democratic Party. Historically, the Liberals and Conservatives have been the two major parties and the only ones to govern, although both have suffered periods of electoral collapse (the Conservatives from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s; the Liberals currently). The NDP was until recently [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg a perpetual third (or fourth) party]], but has been an important force in Canadian politics, propping up minority Liberal governments in 1972-74 and 2006, and frequently raising policy concerns that were taken forward by Liberal governments. The Green Party, while still small compared to the big three, is increasing in visibility and mainstream support and won its first seat in the 2011 election. There are many other smaller parties (e.g. Marijuana Party, Communist Party), and a few frivolous yet funny ones (e.g. the Rhinoceros Party). As of the 2011 election, the Conservatives are in power with a majority government led by PM Stephen Harper, and the NDP are, for the first time in their history, the official opposition.

Of note is the fact that practicing Muslim Naheed Nenshi was elected Mayor of Calgary in October 2010. Bear in mind that Calgary is not just in Alberta, generally considered the most conservative province in Canada, but is also the largest city in ''southern'' Alberta, arguably the most conservative part of the province. This would probably unthinkable in most, if not all, of the United States.

The environment has also become a [[IncrediblyLamePun hot]] topic (no pun intended) in recent years. The Liberals and the Green Party have put environmental regulations at the center of their platforms, the NDP also supports reforms, and the Conservatives are more cautious, but still interested in, at minimum, seeming like they care. However, since most of the Conservatives' environment platform seems to be "We'll Just See What The US Does", and the US doesn't seem to be doing much of anything, Canada won't be doing much of anything with regards to the environment for the time being. In the meantime, the provinces are generally content to sit and bitch at each other about who gets what money. This has been described as "exactly like the European Union, just with more land".

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in the 2011 federal election -- you know, [[WhamEpisode the one where the Conservatives won a majority, the NDP won Official Opposition for the first time, the Liberals and Bloc got decimated,]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the Greens won a seat]]. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automatic "robocalls" to non-Conservative voters in swing ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and has traced them to an automated calling company in {{Edmonton}}, among others. The opposition NDP and Liberals have [[StatusQuoIsGod (rather predictably) reacted with outrage,]] while the Conservatives have naturally denied any responsibility, though one of their bottom-rung staffers has resigned from the office of one of their [=MPs=] in Ontario.

A thing of note for American readers: the Canadian political centre (as used to described parties here) is to the left of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem the American center]]. Canadian conservatives might be right-leaning "Blue Dog" Democrats or moderate "Rockefeller Republicans" in the US, while the Liberals' politics are closer to those of the left wing of the Democrats (i.e. Nancy Pelosi). The NDP are to the left of anything mainstream in US politics.
* Not sure that describes all Conservatives; some members of the current caucus are pretty strong social conservatives. As regards the NDP, the best American analogy would be Bernie Sanders, or perhaps Dennis Kucinich.

A thing of note for American readers: the Canadian political centre (as used to described parties here) is to the left of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem the American center]]. Canadian conservatives might be right-leaning "Blue Dog" Democrats or moderate "Rockefeller Republicans" in the US, while the Liberals' politics are closer to those of the left wing of the Democrats (i.e. Nancy Pelosi). The NDP are to the left of almost anything mainstream in US politics, though Bernie Sanders and Dennis Kucinich would probably fit in with the party.

A thing of note for American readers: the Canadian political centre (as used to described parties here) is to the left of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem the American center]]. Canadian conservatives might be right-leaning "Blue Dog" Democrats or moderate "Rockefeller Republicans" in the US, while the Liberals' politics are closer to those of the left wing of the Democrats (i.e. Nancy Pelosi). The NDP are to the left of anything mainstream in US politics.

One significant difference when it comes to individual politicians compared to the United States is that there is no equivalent in Canadian constitutional law to the "natural born citizen" requirement, and in general Parliament (and some of the provincial legislatures) will have a higher number of naturalized immigrants than jurisdictions in the United States. At the time of this writing (February, 2010), there are more Muslims sitting in the Parliament (all of them foreign-born, including one who was a veteran combat pilot in the Pakistani Air Force) than have ever been in Congress, as well as 15 Sikhs, most of them immigrants as well. The previous two Governors-General (Adrienne Clarkson and Michaëlle Jean) were also immigrants (from China--well, HongKong[[hottip:*:Clarkson, born Adrienne Poy, was married to the English-born academic Stephen Clarkson 1963-1965 and retained his name after their divorce.]]--and Haiti, respectively).

One significant difference when it comes to individual politicians compared to the United States is that there is no equivalent in Canadian constitutional law to the "natural born citizen" requirement, and in general Parliament (and some of the provincial legislatures) will have a higher number of naturalized immigrants than jurisdictions in the United States. At the time of this writing (February, 2010), there are more Muslims sitting in the Parliament (all of them foreign-born, including one who was a veteran combat pilot in the Pakistani Air Force) than have ever been in Congress, as well as 15 Sikhs, most of them immigrants as well. The previous two Governor-Generals were also immigrants (from China and Haiti, respectively).

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in the 2011 federal election -- you know, [[WhamEpisode the one where the Conservatives won a majority, the NDP won Official Opposition for the first time, the Liberals and Bloc got decimated,]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the Greens won a seat]]. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automatic "robocalls" to non-Conservative voters in swing ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and has traced them to an automated calling company in {{Edmonton}}, among others. The opposition NDP and Liberals have [[StatusQuoIsGod (rather predictably) reacted with outrage,]] while the Conservatives have naturally denied any responsibility, though one of their bottom-rung staffers has resigned from the office of one of their [=MPs=] in Ontario.

Canada is divided into ten provinces - from east to west: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island("PEI"), New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia("BC") - and three territories - Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and the Yukon.[[hottip:*:Territories differ from provinces in that the power of a territory is conferred by the federal government with an Act of Parliament in the name of the Sovereign (like all legislation), while the power of a province is granted directly from the Sovereign by the province's constitution. In other words, it's ''exactly'' like the difference between a US state and a US territory, except for the obvious difference that the US, being a republic, doesn't have a Sovereign to confer legitimacy, and relies on "the people" instead.]] Each province elects a Legislative Assembly, whose members are normally named Members of the Legislative Assembly ([=MLAs=]), though Ontario calls them Members of Provincial Parliament ([=MPPs=]), Quebec calls them Members of the National Assembly ([=MNAs=]), and Newfoundland calls them Members of the House of Legislature ([=MHLs=]). All provinces and the Yukon territory use a similar election system as the federal House of Commons does, though generally the ridings are different. The leader of the party with the most members generally becomes the Premier, though there are occasional exceptions when two smaller parties form a coalition to create a majority(as happened in Ontario in 1985). The Northwest Territories and Nunavut operate using a non-partisan consensus government model, unique to the territories (though similar theoretically to Nebraska's non-executive legislature and most municipalities in Canada); the premier and speaker are then chosen from the elected MLA's, who are all officially independent of political parties. MLA's in the NWT and Nunavut may be affiliated with federal parties privately, however, and should they pursue federal politics, align with a federal party (the two territories are represented by Liberal, NDP and Conservative politicians in parliament and the senate). Each province also has a Lieutenant-Governor (or a Commissioner in the three territories), the Sovereign's representative, appointed on recommendation from the Governor-General.

The Prime Minister is the head of the Canadian government for all intents and purposes, similar to a Senate Majority Leader or Speaker of the House in American Politics (because of the Westminster-style parliament, Canada's executive branch is purely ceremonial, so the usual executive powers is devolved to the prime minister). However, Canadians do not vote for the Prime Minister directly; instead, they vote for their Member of Parliament in their riding only. The party with the most seats in the House of Commons forms a majority government (when they control more than half the seats) or a minority government (when they control less than half, but still more than any other party), and the Prime Minister is then appointed by the party itself [[hottip:*:Theoretically, in any situation where there is a minority government, some of the other parties could get together and form a coalition government, but this has not happened since confederation; the one time it seemed like this might happen--in 2009--it was kiboshed by the ruling Tories' clever exploitation of EaglelandOsmosis and general distrust of the Bloc Quebecois.]]. In practice, Canadians know what leader a party will follow during the election cycle, by (unbroken) convention, it is the party leader. In the (remarkably likely) event that the Prime Minister loses his riding, a junior member of the party will typically resign his seat to give to the PM, as the PM must have a seat to serve in the government. This happened as early as the 1870s, after John A. Macdonald's government collapsed over the CPR scandal and he lost his own seat in Kingston. From 1878 to 1882, he represented the riding of Victoria in British Columbia, since he couldn't get elected in his home province of Ontario.

The Prime Minister is the head of the Canadian government for all intents and purposes, similar to a Senate Majority Leader or Speaker of the House in American Politics (because of the Westminster-style parliament, Canada's executive branch is purely ceremonial, so the usual executive powers is devolved to the prime minister). However, Canadians do not vote for the Prime Minister directly; instead, they vote for their Member of Parliament in their riding only. The party with the most seats in the House of Commons forms a majority government (when they control more than half the seats) or a minority government (when they control less than half, but still more than any other party), and the Prime Minister is then appointed by the party itself [[hottip:*:Theoretically, in any situation where there is a minority government, some of the other parties could get together and form a coalition government, but this has not happened since confederation]]. In practice, Canadians know what leader a party will follow during the election cycle, by (unbroken) convention, it is the party leader. In the (remarkably likely) event that the Prime Minister loses his riding, a junior member of the party will typically resign his seat to give to the PM, as the PM must have a seat to serve in the government. This happened as early as the 1870s, after John A. Macdonald's government collapsed over the CPR scandal and he lost his own seat in Kingston. From 1878 to 1882, he represented the riding of Victoria in British Columbia, since he couldn't get elected in his home province of Ontario.

Prime Minister Harper stood by her for a while (in the face of public information), then rumours began to rise that Guergis had been letting her husband, a former cabinet minister, use her office to promote his business. Apparently some photos surfaced of the two in a [[DenOfIniquity shady strip club]] with [[HookersAndBlow cocaine and, reportedly]], "busty hookers". Guergis was then [[YouHaveFailedMe expelled from cabinet by Harper]], not to mention [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness expelled from the Conservative Party caucus]], and [[OhCrap an RCMP investigation was launched]] (all thanks to ''private'' information). Even after the RCMP cleared Guergis of wrongdoing, she [[TheAtoner continued to sit as an independent MP]], though she lost her seat to the Conservative challenger in the subsequent election. This led to the joke that Harper now always stands behind his cabinet members because it's easier to push them under a bus from that position.

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in the 2011 federal election -- you know, [[WhamEpisode the one where the Conservatives won a majority, the NDP won Official Opposition for the first time, the Liberals and Bloc got decimated,]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the Greens won a seat]]. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automatic "robocalls" to non-Conservative voters in swing ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and has traced them to an automated calling company in Edmonton, among others. The opposition NDP and Liberals have (rather predictably) reacted with outrage, while the Conservatives have naturally denied any responsibility, though one of their bottom-rung staffers has resigned from the office of one of their [=MPs=] in Ontario.

Two more recent cases of what could be described as sex-scandals have happened within the past five years. One involved the VERY public break-up of two prominent Conservative [=MPs=], Belinda Stronach and Peter [=MacKay=], who had been dating, when Stronach defected to the Liberals for a Cabinet post -- which she lost the next year after the Liberals lost an election -- leading to a stunned-looking [=MacKay=] standing on his farm talking about how "at least my dog is loyal", and a narrow aversion of an election in the now evenly-divided House (since the government can't fall on a tie, and Stronach's defection got them up to parity). It also led to a massive variety of ribald jokes at Stronach's expense from prominent Conservatives (like the next one, by former Premier of Alberta Ralph Klein), the most notable of which is that "She didn't have a Conservative bone in her body ... okay, [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean maybe one]]", many of which naturally [[CrossesTheLineTwice proved controversial in their own right]]. The other involved the Foreign Affairs Minister dating a woman with connections to a chapter of the Hell's Angels and actually leaving important classified documents lying around her apartment (followed by their mysterious disappearance), in a classic RealLife case of [[TooDumbToLive Too Dumb To Be Prime Minister]].

Canada is divided into ten provinces - from east to west: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island("PEI"), New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia("BC") - and three territories - Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and the Yukon.[[hottip:*:Territories differ from provinces in that the power of a territory is conferred by the federal government with an Act of Parliament in the name of the Sovereign (like all legislation), while the power of a province is granted directly from the Sovereign by the province's constitution. In other words, it's ''exactly'' like the difference between a US state and a US territory, except for the obvious difference that the US, being a republic, doesn't have a Sovereign to confer legitimacy, and relies on "the people" instead.]] Each province elects a Legislative Assembly, whose members are normally named Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs), though Ontario calls them Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs), Quebec calls them Members of the National Assembly (MNAs), and Newfoundland calls them Members of the House of Legislature (MHLs). All provinces and the Yukon territory use a similar election system as the federal House of Commons does, though generally the ridings are different. The leader of the party with the most members generally becomes the Premier, though there are occasional exceptions when two smaller parties form a coalition to create a majority(as happened in Ontario in 1985). The Northwest Territories and Nunavut operate using a non-partisan consensus government model, unique to the territories (though similar theoretically to Nebraska's non-executive legislature and most municipalities in Canada); the premier and speaker are then chosen from the elected MLA's, who are all officially independent of political parties. MLA's in the NWT and Nunavut may be affiliated with federal parties privately, however, and should they pursue federal politics, align with a federal party (the two territories are represented by Liberal, NDP and Conservative politicians in parliament and the senate). Each province also has a Lieutenant-Governor (or a Commissioner in the three territories), the Sovereign's representative, appointed on recommendation from the Governor-General.

* A different variation of the normal election cycle occurred in 2008, when the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois drew up a formal agreement to topple the PM and the ruling Conservatives in a no-confidence vote (Canada was in a minority government--i.e. Liberals, NDP and Bloc together outnumbered the Conservatives), then request that the Governor-General install them as a majority coalition government, all without triggering a general election. While such an act is perfectly legit in a parliamentary democracy, the Conservatives launched a media blitz (banking on the--correct--assumption that Canadians do not know how their government actually works) characterizing the act as a "coup d'etat" and killed the idea when the Liberals backed down. The fact that the Liberals had just had substantial losses in the preceding election, but would be leading the coalition nonetheless, also made the idea troubling to some Canadians, as did the fact that the coalition would require the support of the Bloc, a separatist party.

In federal politics, the three major parties are the moderate/right-wing Conservatives or "Tories", the moderate Liberals ("Grits"), and the leftist/social democratic New Democratic Party. Historically, the Liberals and Conservatives have been the two major parties and the only ones to govern, although both have suffered periods of electoral collapse (the Conservatives from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s; the Liberals currently). The NDP was until recently a perpetual third (or fourth) party, but has been an important force in Canadian politics, propping up minority Liberal governments in 1972-74 and 2006, and frequently raising policy concerns that were taken forward by Liberal governments. The Green Party, while still small compared to the big three, is increasing in visibility and mainstream support and won its first seat in the 2011 election. There are many other smaller parties (e.g. Marijuana Party, Communist Party), and a few frivolous yet funny ones (e.g. the Rhinoceros Party). As of the 2011 election, the Conservatives are in power with a majority government led by PM Stephen Harper, and the NDP are, for the first time in their history, the official opposition.

The 2011 election saw a historic shake-up in Canadian politics, and how enduring it will be remains to be seen. The NDP, largely by gaining major support in Quebec - where they had never before been a contender - gained a third of the seats in Parliament and became the Official Opposition for the first time in their history. This development was also responsible for the demise of the Bloc Quebecois, who fell from dominance in Quebec to only four seats, not enough to qualify them as an official party. The Liberals, for the first time in ''their'' history, fell to third-party status. The Conservatives, for the first time since the 1980s, won a majority government. Finally, the Green Party won its first-ever seat in Parliament, with its leader Elizabeth May being elected in a BC riding. The current situation is more polarizing than ever before, as the NDP is further to the proverbial "left" than the Liberals on most issues and the current, Reform-derived Conservatives are further right than the Progressive Conservative party that preceded them.

As if that wasn't enough drama for one year, NDP leader Jack Layton, whose popularity played a significant role in the NDP's success, died of cancer a few months following the election. Nycole Turmel is the interim party leader, and a leadership convention will be held in March 2012.

Provincial politics tends to also have the Conservatives, Liberals, and NDP as the primary parties, though there are exceptions -- the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan imploded in corruption scandals and was replaced by the Saskatchewan Party, the BC Liberal Party is in practice a merger between the Liberals and Conservatives, and Quebec politics is just weird[[hottip:*:It features the ''Parti Québécois'' (PQ), the Liberal Party, and the ''Action Démocratique du Québec'' (ADQ). The first is the separatist party, and is slightly left-leaning. The second is federalist, and is slightly right-leaning. The third is "autonomist" (nobody's sure what the entails, really) and right-leaning. One thing to note: Quebec is somewhat to the left of Canada in general, notably on social issues, and as such, the Quebec Liberal Party is very similar to the Federal Conservative Party; indeed, the current Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, rose to prominence as Progressive Conservative minister under Bryan Mulroney--and even became the leader of the party after the 1992 wipeout--before becoming leader of the Quebec Liberals.]]. The NDP does frequently win in provincial elections, especially in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and BC. Alberta is also an interesting case -- having been a province since 1905, they have experienced only two changes of government, one during the Depression and one after popular premier Ernest Manning (father of Reform Party founder Preston Manning) resigned and whose successor had nary a fraction of his political skills. Since 1971, a string of Conservative leaders have won a majority in every election, to the point where Alberta is routinely considered a one-party state, and it's only half a joke.

The result of the above is that although parties can have the same name at federal and provincial levels, often that's ''all'' they have in common. Canadians, in general, are well aware of this so there's no eyebrows raised whem say, a former NDP premier of Ontario (Bob Rae) can make a serious run at leadership of the federal Liberal Party, the former (and last) head of the federal Progressive Conservatives, Jean Charest, can become the Liberal premier of Québec, and the former NDP premier of British Columbia, Ujjal Dosanjh, also switched parties to become a federal Liberal cabinet minister.

Municipal politics tends to be officially non-partisan, except in BC. However, individual councilors and mayors are often known to have particular partisan leanings -- for example, Jack Layton, previous leader of the federal NDP, was a Toronto councilor before he won the leadership.

The environment has also become a hot topic (no pun intended) in recent years. The Liberals and the Green Party have put environmental regulations at the center of their platforms, the NDP also supports reforms, and the Conservatives are more cautious, but still interested in, at minimum, seeming like they care. However, since most of the Conservatives' environment platform seems to be "We'll Just See What The US Does", and the US doesn't seem to be doing much of anything, Canada won't be doing much of anything with regards to the environment for the time being. In the meantime, the provinces are generally content to sit and bitch at each other about who gets what money. This has been described as "exactly like the European Union, just with more land".

Two more recent cases of what could be described as sex-scandals have happened within the past five years. One involved the VERY public break-up of two prominent Conservative [=MPs=], Belinda Stronach and Peter [=MacKay=], who had been dating, when Stronach defected to the Liberals for a Cabinet post -- which she lost the next year after the Liberals lost an election -- leading to a stunned-looking [=MacKay=] standing on his farm talking about how "at least my dog is loyal", and a narrow aversion of an election in the now evenly-divided House (since the government can't fall on a tie, and Stronach's defection got them up to parity). It also led to a massive variety of ribald jokes at Stronach's expense from prominent Conservatives (like the next one, by former Premier of Alberta Ralph Klein), the most notable of which is that "She didn't have a Conservative bone in her body ... okay, maybe one", many of which naturally [[CrossesTheLineTwice proved controversial in their own right]]. The other involved the Foreign Affairs Minister dating a woman with connections to a chapter of the Hell's Angels and actually leaving important classified documents lying around her apartment (followed by their mysterious disappearance), in a classic RealLife case of [[TooDumbToLive Too Dumb To Be Prime Minister]].

The most recent scandal to rear its head has its roots in the 2011 federal election -- you know, [[WhamEpisode the one where the Conservatives won a majority, the NDP won Official Opposition for the first time, the Liberals and Bloc got decimated,]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the Greens won a seat]]. It has come to light that ''someone'' was sending automatic "robocalls" to non-Conservative voters in swing ridings, falsely directing them to incorrect polling stations or otherwise harassing them into not voting. Elections Canada got wind of these incidents via complaints from the public, and has traced them to an automated calling company in Edmonton, among others. The opposition NDP and Liberals have (rather predictably) reacted with outrage, while the Conservatives have naturally denied any responsibility, though one of their bottom-rung staffers has resigned from the office of one of their MPs in Ontario.

One can't forget the most recent scandal to flag the Conservatives. In February 2010, Conservative cabinet minister (for the status of women!) Helena Guergis was accused of throwing a hissy fit at the Charlottetown airport, located in Canada's smallest province, PEI. The minister allegedly threw shoes across the security screening area and banged on a security door. When media and the Liberals asked for the security tapes, CATSA (the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority) could not provide them (many suspect [[ExecutiveMeddling Conservative meddling]]).

Prime Minister Harper stood by her for a while, then rumours began to rise that Guergis had been letting her husband, a former cabinet minister, use her office to promote his business. Apparently some photos surfaced of the two in a [[DenOfIniquity shady strip club]] with [[HookersAndBlow cocaine and, reportedly]], "busty hookers". Guergis was then [[YouHaveFailedMe expelled from cabinet by Harper]], not to mention [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness expelled from the Conservative Party caucus]], and [[OhCrap an RCMP investigation was launched]]. Even after the RCMP cleared Guergis of wrongdoing, she [[TheAtoner continued to sit as an independent MP]], though she lost her seat to the Conservative challenger in the subsequent election. This led to the joke that Harper now always stands behind his cabinet members because it's easier to push them under a bus from that position.

** An, if rare, event in which the GG can become useful is when the Prime Minister starts to show signs of getting dictatorial; at which point, the Governor General (as the Commander-in-Chief) can order the army to forcibly depose the PM.
*** Taken directly from the Westminster System used by the British Parliament and Monarchy, that serves as the basis for ''all'' Commonwealth Countries. Basically, they're meant to keep each other in line.

Canada also has a very short election cycle, which can, in theory, occur at any time. No party can retain control without an election for more than five years. In addition, a vote of no-confidence can force an election, and the Prime Minister can ask the Governor-General to dissolve the government at any time (as long as it's been in power for at least six months). Once government is dissolved, the election cycle lasts exactly six weeks, during which candidates campaign and stump for votes.

Two more recent cases of what could be described as sex-scandals have happened within the past five years. One involved the VERY public break-up of two prominent Conservative [=MPs=], Belinda Stronach and Peter [=MacKay=], who had been dating, when Stronach defected to the Liberals for a Cabinet post -- which she lost the next year after the Liberals lost an election -- leading to a stunned-looking [=MacKay=] standing on his farm talking about how "at least my dog is loyal", and a narrow aversion of an election in the now evenly-divided House (since the government can't fall on a tie, and Stronach's defection got them up to parity). It also led to a massive variety of ribald jokes at Stronach's expense from prominent Conservatives (like the next one, by former Premier of Alberta Ralph Klein), the most notable of which is that "She didn't have a Conservative bone in her body ... okay, [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean maybe one]]", many of which naturally [[CrossesTheLineTwice proved controversial in their own right]]. The other involved the Foreign Affairs Minister dating a woman with connections to a chapter of the Hell's Angels and actually leaving important classified documents lying around her apartment (followed by their mysterious disappearance), in a classic RealLife case of [[TooDumbToLive Too Dumb To Be Prime Minister]].