Identify and Explain the Workings of the Current Electoral System Used in Canada

Every election needs to be free and fair. The voting systems or electoral system are methods of selecting political representatives. In Canada, the election system is governed by provincial elections acts thus an accurate guide for provincial elections. The Canada Elections Act governs the system. This paper provides an in-depth explanation of the working of the current electoral system used in Canada.

In the early years of 1918, only men aged above 21 were allowed to take part in elections in Canada. Even on attaining the age, other qualifications are also considered. However, due to the new regulations, any Canadian citizen aged above 18 years of age might vote. The system works by ensuring the name of the person appears on the official voter's list (Henry, 2007). The elections are held from a permanent electoral register that is maintained and updated on a regular basis. Previously, the enumerators moved from house to house compiling a list of eligible voters. It made the whole process to take a long period.

The electoral method is known as the first past the post system. In this system, the candidate with most votes wins the seat at the House of Commons thus representing that riding as the Member of Parliament. The members of parliament are asked by the Governor General to form the government, which consists mainly of the party whose candidates have won many seats, and thus the partys leader becomes the Prime Minister and the candidate with the second highest seats become the opposition official (Richard, 2017). The absolute majority of the electorate is not required and thus rarely achieved. Therefore, the power has been held by two parties for most of Canadas history. Previously, the Prime Minister had authority to ask the Governor General to carry out an election at any particular time as long as not earlier than five years. In 2007, an act was passed by the Conservative Parliament to set fixed election dates. According to the law the curtailed power allowing the Governor General to dissolve Parliament at any particular time. This was carried out during the 2008 elections by the request of the Prime Minister. According to the law, elections were to be held on the third Monday in October of the fourth year of the last election. However, the governor has authority to ask the House of Commons to be dissolved, and an election carried out in case the prime minister and the government loses confidence in the House of Commons.

On the Election Day, eligible voters go to the polling stations on the same day across the whole country. Hours are set aside to ensure every citizen has an opportunity to vote. Due to this, employers are required to give their employees three continuous hours to vote. In the past, voting was mostly restricted to polling stations on the Election Day, and the advance polls were only for people who could not access the polling stations on the elections date. Nonetheless, with the new act, people have various methods for people to vote whenever they wish. Apart from the voting day, four days are set aside for advance voting starting ten days before elections. Also, the voters can cast a ballot at the satellite office or the local election Canada office during most of the campaign period or even request a special ballot and thus vote through mail (William, 2007). The special and advanced ballots are not counted till the closing of the polls on Election Day. This is necessary to prevent the voters from getting influenced on the Election Day, and thus candidates or their representatives are present at the polling stations to ensure honesty during the vote counting.

Any citizen can vie as a candidate during elections as long as they have legal requirements to become a candidate during an election, only a few end up vying because there are judged by their party affiliations instead of their qualifications (John, 2006). The parties nominate their candidates, and thus the party name and candidate name appear on the ballot paper. Voters might only vote in the constituency they are enrolled among the 338 constituencies of the country.

In conclusion, Canada has a simple voting system as compared to other countries in the world. The Plurality and Past system ensure that voters caste only one vote and the candidate with the most votes are elected. Many reforms and changes have been made in the country to ensure the election process is free and fair giving a chance to citizens above the age of eighteen. The elections are held on fixed dates after every five years, and the Prime Minister can ask the Governor to request an election due to special instances such as lack of confidence from the House of Commons. The electoral system is well designed and its functioning well equipped for the voting process.

REFERENCES

John, W. (2006).Canadian Electoral Systems.New York: SAGE Publishers.

Henry, M. (2009).Making Every Vote Count: Reassing Canadas Electoral System.Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Richard, J. (2017). The Canadian Party System: An Analytic History. California: UBC Press.

Williams, P. (2007). New Electoral System In Canada. New York: Inst Intergovmnl Relations.