From the CBC:
“Your Canadian federal election
glossary”
Canadians head to the polls on
Oct. 21 to elect a new federal government. Elections in Canada take place
according to specific rules that govern the process. Here are some of the terms
you'll hear during the election campaign.
Advance polls — During specific
times and days before election day, polls are opened for people who want to
vote early. The ballots are not counted until election day.
Attack ad — A negative ad that
criticizes a political candidate. These ads are paid for by opposing political
parties, or by third-party groups.
Ballot — The piece of paper on
which electors mark a vote for a candidate. Candidates are listed in
alphabetical order on the ballot. The ballot also includes information about
each candidate's political party, or if the candidate has registered as an
independent. See also: special ballot.
Canada Elections Act — The law
that regulates federal elections.
Commissioner of Canada Elections
— An independent officer who investigates violations of the Canada Elections
Act and the Referendum Act. The commissioner is independent of Elections
Canada, however the commissioner is appointed to a 10-year term by the Chief
Electoral Officer. The commissioner can't have been a candidate or have worked
for a political party, either as an employee or contractor.
Chief electoral officer — Person
responsible for overseeing federal elections in Canada. This person is
considered an independent agent of Parliament.
Debate consortium — A group of
broadcasters that agree to work together to broadcast and livestream debates
between political leaders. The consortium negotiates the terms of the debates
with political parties.
Debates commissioner — For 2019,
there is a Leaders' Debates Commission, established by the federal government,
that will plan and hold two leaders debates, one in English and one in French,
in early to mid-October. It is worth noting the commission will contract an
organization, or a group of organizations to plan and run the debates.
Donation limit — Elections Canada
sets limits on how much money can be donated to registered parties, registered
associations and nomination candidates. In 2019, the annual limit is $1,600.
Additionally, a candidate can donate up to $5,000 to their own campaign. More
details are available on the Elections Canada website. These limits are
separate from how much third parties can spend on advertising.
Elections Canada — The
organization that oversees federal elections and referendums in Canada. It is
independent and non-partisan.
Elector — A person who is
eligible to vote. Must be a Canadian citizen and at least 18 years old.
What you need to know to vote in
Canada's federal election
Electoral district — A
geographical area where residents elect a representative in an election. There
are federal, provincial and municipal districts. Districts are often created
according to population size, so districts in big cities may be geographically
small (Toronto Centre covers just six square kilometres), while in
sparsely-populated areas an electoral district may be extremely large (Nunavut
is 2,093,190 square kilometres). These are also called constituencies or
ridings. Canada has 338 federal electoral districts.
Electoral reform — The term for
changing Canada's electoral system to better reflect how the population votes.
Currently, the federal system is a first-past-the-post, winner-take-all format,
which means that votes for candidates who don't win are essentially discarded.
Alternate systems would see election results better reflect the popular vote.
Electoral District Association
(EDA) — The local branch of a political party in an electoral district. The EDA
is in charge of the candidate nomination process, has an executive and can
raise funds.
Some rules have changed around
voting this year, such as Canadians citizens living abroad. Previously, citizen
living abroad for five years or fewer could still vote, but laws changed to
allow citizens living abroad for any length of time to vote.
First past the post — A
description of our current electoral system, in which the candidate with the
most votes in a riding is elected. The winner doesn't need a majority of the vote, merely the highest
number of votes. First past the post refers to horse racing, where the first
horse past the finish line (post) is declared the winner. Critics of the system
say that this can lead to governments that don't have the support of the
majority of voters. See also: popular vote.
Fixed election date — Canada has
a fixed federal election date which means elections are generally held every
four years. However, there are some situations in which an election may be held
earlier, such as when a government loses a vote of non-confidence. Elections Canada specifies that the fixed
date is the third Monday in October, within four years of the previous federal
election. The election also must always take place at least 36 days after the
election writ is issued. If that day falls on a holiday, then the election
takes place on a Tuesday.
Judicial recount — A second count
of ballots, which takes place in front of a judge. The recount is automatically
requested when there's a tie, or when or the difference between the two leading
candidates is less than 1/1000 of the votes cast, according to Elections
Canada. Electors themselves can also request recounts within four days of the
vote if they have concerns over how votes were counted, recorded or how ballots
were rejected.
Leaders debate — When the leaders
of the parties considered most likely to get seats meet to debate political
issues in a live broadcast. Usually there are a series of debates, hosted by a
debate consortium.
National register of electors
(voters list) — This is also known as the voters list. In Canada it is an
electronic database of people eligible to vote that includes names and
addresses. Voters may have to re-register
if they move electoral districts.
Official proclamation of election
— This is issued by the Governor General of Canada, after the current session
of Parliament is dissolved. Once this happens, then the chief electoral officer
issues writs of election to every riding in the country.
Pre-writ — This is the period
before the writs are issued, that is, before the election process officially
begins. In 2019, the pre-writ period began on June 30. There are regulations
regarding how much third parties can spend on advertising during the pre-writ
period.
Political party — A group of
people with shared political views who join together to try to get candidates
elected. In fact, Elections Canada describes the fielding of candidates as a
"fundamental purpose" of a political party, separating it from other
politically minded groups. Political parties may be popular and mainstream or
appeal to a niche. In order to register as a political party in Canada, a party
must have at least 250 members — they have to be electors — and it must endorse
at least one of those members as a candidate in an election.
Here are the registered federal
political parties in Canada:
Animal Protection Party of Canada
Bloc Québécois
Christian Heritage Party of
Canada
Communist Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
Green Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
Libertarian Party of Canada
Marijuana Party
Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada
National Citizens Alliance of
Canada
New Democratic Party
People's Party of Canada
Progressive Canadian Party
Rhinoceros Party
Polling station — The physical
location where you go to vote.
Polling clerk — A poll clerk
works at a polling station and checks to see if your name is on the voting
list.
Popular vote — The total number
of votes a party receives, which is different than the number of seats a party
wins. It's possible for a party to receive the highest total number of votes,
but not win a majority of seats and therefore fail to form a government.
Returning officer — The person in
charge of the electoral process in a riding. This person is appointed by
Elections Canada for a 10-year term, and has specific duties to ensure an
election runs according to regulations.
Riding — A riding is the same as
an electoral district, a geographically defined region that elects a
representative.
Riding association — Same as an
electoral district association.
Scrutineer — A scrutineer is
person authorized on behalf of a candidate to observe at a polling station. A
scrutineer can ask to see the ID of someone voting, for example, and can object
to it. However, the independent election officer from Elections Canada makes
the final decision on whether to allow the person to vote. More here.
Special ballot — These ballots
are for electors who can't go to a polling station on election day, and are
often mailed to Elections Canada. Electors who vote by special ballot include
Canadian citizens who live outside Canada, people in the Canadian Forces,
people who are incarcerated and people who want to vote by special ballot
because they're away from their riding or they can't make it to the polling station
on election day or to advance polls. A special ballot doesn't have a list of
candidates. Instead, the elector fills in the name of the candidate they're
voting for. More on special ballots.
Stump speech — A stock speech a
candidate gives repeatedly while campaigning, often repeating the same themes,
sayings and ideas. The term came from the fact politicians used to deliver
speeches from a tree stump.
Third party — Elections Canada
defines a third party as "a person or group that wants to participate in
or influence elections other than as a political party, electoral district
association, nomination contestant or candidate." Anyone who spends more
than $500 dollars (usually this means advertising) has to register with
Elections Canada and abide by spending rules.
Voter identification card — These
cards can be used as one of two required pieces of ID needed to vote. The cards
are mailed to registered electors about three weeks before election day, and
include the elector's name, address and where they can vote.
Writ (of election) — The writ is
a piece of paper from the chief electoral officer issued to the returning
officers in all 338 federal ridings. The writ tells the returning officers to
hold an election in that riding on the fixed election date. After election day,
the returning officer writes the name of the winning candidate on the writ and
returns it to Elections Canada.
Whistle stop — A short stop made
by a candidate on the campaign trail. A whistle-stop tour is when a candidate
visits a bunch of places for a very short amount of time. The saying began to
be used in a political context by journalists in 1948 when describing U.S.
President Harry Truman's campaign train tour.
^ This should help clarify the different meanings of a Canadian election. Hopefully Trudeau (who was
officially found guilty by a Canadian Government investigation of several
unethical acts while in office) won't be re-elected. FYI: In a Parliamentary
system like Canada (the UK, etc.) you have to vote for the political party you
want to win and that determines the Prime Minster. Also the Americans who
complain about having to show 1 form of picture ID to vote should note that in
every Province and Territory of Canada you have to show ID to vote and they
don't say its discrimination against anyone - just a way to prove you are who
you are (like people in the US and Canada have had to do to access 99.9% of
Federal and State/Provincial/Territorial Government programs, events, etc. for
the past 18 years.) One main election difference is that in Canada an election
campaign begins 1 month before the election and not several years before like
in the US. ^
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.