Canadian electoral system

The Canadian electoral system is based on a parliamentary system of government, modelled on that of the United Kingdom.

The Parliament of Canada consists of:

Elections Canada is the non-partisan agency responsible for the conduct of elections in Canada, including federal elections, by-elections and referendums. It is headed by the Chief Electoral Officer.

Representation in the House of Commons is based on electoral districts, also known as constituencies or ridings. Each riding elects one member to the House of Commons, and the number of ridings is established through a formula set out in the Constitution.

Riding boundaries are established by independent commissions, and take into account:

New commissions are set up every ten years to make any necessary revisions to existing boundaries, following criteria defined in the 'Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act. The process of redefining electoral boundaries is called "redistribution", and the results are recorded in a "representation order". The Representation Order of 2003 set the number of ridings at 308.

Canada's electoral system is referred to as a "first past the post" system. The candidate with the most votes in a riding wins a seat in the House of Commons and represents that riding as its Member of Parliament (MP). The Governor General asks the Members of Parliament to form a government, which is normally the party whose candidates have won the most seats; that party's leader generally becomes Prime Minister. An absolute majority of the electorate is not needed, and is rarely achieved. As a result, power has been held by either of two parties for most of Canada's history. The party whose candidates win the second largest number of seats becomes the Official Opposition.

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