2. Political Spectrum & Elections

3. Ideologies Are a body of beliefs that guide how an organization approaches making decisions Politicians are often guided by their ideologies when making laws

4. Ideologies Can be divided into two groups: Economic Ideology - Used for making laws about taxation and the marketplace Social Ideology - Used for making laws about society (Criminal and Civil law)

5. Brainstorming Brainstorm a list of words that come to mind when you think of Conservative Social

6. The Spectrum There are many different ways to draw the spectrum, I am going to show you a basic simple one

7. Political Spectrum Left CenterRight Communist Socialist Liberal Conservative Facist

8. 2008 Provincial

9. 2006 Provincial

10. Elections in Canada

11. Introduction Each MP (Member of Parliament) represents one constituency or riding. A riding is an area of roughly 100,000 citizens The number of constituencies in a province relates to population. One candidate only is elected using the “first past the post” electoral system (the person with the most votes wins) Most candidates will represent a political party but may also run as independents.

12. Canada Elections Act This act sets out the rules for the conduct of an election in Canada.conduct of an election in Canada. There are six stages. Dissolution Nomination Enumeration Campaigning Balloting Tabulation Without knowing what these are defined as, can you guess?

13. Dissolution The Governor General, on the advice of the Prime Minister, dissolves Parliament. The Governor General fixes a date as suggested by the Prime Minister. Reasons for calling an election include: The government may have been defeated in the House of Commons – considered a vote of “no confidence” The government is near the end of its five year mandate Public opinion polls are favourable towards the government, so they choose to call an election when they are popular, which increases their chances of winning

14. Enumeration The Chief Electoral Officer is the civil servant in charge of the election. S/he issues a writ of election to begin the process. Returning officers in each constituency are responsible for compiling voter’s lists, which is the process of enumeration Enumerators ensure that the names, addresses and occupations of voters are provided for each polling station. With computers, there is a Permanent Voter’s List that is simply updated at election time

15. Nomination CandidatesCandidates are nominated at nomination meetings run by each political party. A candidate must be over 18 years of age and usually competes with several other candidates. A deposit of $1000 is made with the returning officer to be returned if half as many votes are won as the winner. Nomination papers with the signatures of 100 voters are also required.

16. Campaigning Campaigns begin when the writs are issued and last until the weekend prior to election day. Parties and candidates must convince voters that they represent the best choice for the country. The media play a very important role in an election campaign.

17. Balloting Balloting (voting) normally takes place between 8 AM and 8 PM. In B.C.during the last election, polls opened and closed earlier to allow voting before the election results were reported in eastern Canada. Advance polls allow voters who will be absent on election day to vote early. An X is marked on the ballot opposite the candidate of your choice.

18. Tabulation Following the election, ballots are counted – this is called tabulation The media, with the use of computer technology, usually predicts the results soon after the polls close in B.C. A recount may be necessary if there is a 100 vote margin or concerns about procedures.

19. Proportional Representation Concerns have been expressed about the fairness of our “first past the post” system. A party may win an election with much less than fifty percent of the popular vote. Proportional representation allows additional candidates to be selected from a list according to the percentage of the votes cast. This system is widely used in Europe. Example – see Citizen’s Assembly website: http://www.citizensassembly.bc.ca/public/extra/animations.xml

20. Summary Elections are exciting events in the political life of a nation. Voter turnout at the federal and provincial level can be low due to voter apathy Voter apathy is feeling that your vote won’t make a difference Municipal elections with long lists of candidates are not as well supported by citizens. Election campaigns are expensive; complicated rules have been evolved to regulate party spending. Back

21. One Vote Makes A Difference 1875 - 1 vote turned France from a monarchy to a republic 1923 - Adolf Hitler won leadership of the Nazi party with 1 vote 1960 – 1 vote per precinct made John F. Kennedy the President over contender Richard Nixon.

22. So…Elections are held to select a candidate from their riding (or constituency) These elected members make the House of Commons From the House of Commons, the leader of the party with the most representatives is asked to be the Prime Minister The Prime Minister chooses members of the Cabinet from the House of Commons Elections --> Government

23. Conclusion A study of the Government of Canada is complex and sometimes confusing. There are a great many new terms which must be learned before one can begin to understand how each part of government works and serves the citizens of Canada

24. References Carrie Schlappner, 2009 Allie Bach, 2009