The politics of Canada function within a framework of parliamentary democracy and a federal system of parliamentary government with strong democratic traditions. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, in which the monarch is head of state. In practice, the executive powers are directed by the Cabinet, a committee of ministers of the Crown responsible to the elected House of Commons of Canada and chosen and headed by the Prime Minister of Canada.
The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents are an amalgamation of various codified acts, treaties between the Crown and Indigenous Peoples, uncodified traditions and conventions. Canada is one of the oldest constitutional monarchies in the world.
The British North America Acts 1867–1975 are a series of Acts of Parliament that were at the core of the constitution of Canada. Most were enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom and some by the Parliament of Canada. In Canada, some of the Acts were repealed in Canada by the Constitution Act, 1982. The rest were renamed the Constitution Acts and amended, with those changes only having effect in Canada. The Canadian versions of the Constitution Acts make up the Constitution of Canada, and can only be amended in Canada.
The House of Commons of Canada is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada.
The Parliament of Canada is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the House of Commons is dominant, with the Senate rarely opposing its will. The Senate reviews legislation from a less partisan standpoint and may initiate certain bills. The monarch or his representative, normally the governor general, provides royal assent to make bills into law.
The Canadian electoral system is based on a parliamentary system of government, modelled on that of the United Kingdom.
An electoral district in Canada is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based. It is officially known in Canadian French as a circonscription but frequently called a comté (county). In English it is also colloquially and more commonly known as a riding or constituency.
The Constitution Act, 1867, originally enacted as the British North America Act, 1867, and referred to as the BNA Act or the Act, is a major part of the Constitution of Canada. The Act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system. The British North America Acts, including this Act, were renamed in 1982 with the patriation of the Constitution ; however, it is still known by its original name in United Kingdom records. Amendments were also made at this time: section 92A was added, giving provinces greater control over non-renewable natural resources.
The 39th Canadian Parliament was in session from April 3, 2006 until September 7, 2008. The membership was set by the 2006 federal election on January 23, 2006, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections. The Parliament was dissolved on September 7, 2008, with an election to determine the membership of the 40th Parliament occurring on October 14, 2008.
Canadian Senate divisions refers to two aspects of the Senate of Canada. First, it refers to the division of Canada into four regional Senate divisions of 24 senators each, as set out in section 22 of the Constitution Act, 1867. The four regions are the Western Provinces, Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes. These regions are intended to serve the Senate's purpose of providing regional representation in the Parliament of Canada, in contrast to the popular representation that the House of Commons is intended to provide. While not within any of the original four Senate divisions, Senate seats are also allocated to Newfoundland and Labrador and the three territories. The four divisions can be expanded when the need arises to have an extra two senators appointed to each regional division.
Before 1982, modifying the Constitution of Canada primarily meant amending the British North America Act, 1867. Unlike most other constitutions, however, the Act had no amending formula; instead, changes were enacted through Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom called the British North America Acts.
The federal electoral redistribution of 2012 was a redistribution of electoral districts ("ridings") in Canada following the results of the 2011 Canadian census. As a result of amendments to the Constitution Act, 1867, the number of seats in the House of Commons of Canada increased from 308 to 338. The previous electoral redistribution was in 2003.
The Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act, commonly known by its acronym EBRA, is an act of the Parliament of Canada that was passed by the 26th Canadian Parliament in 1964. The Act was introduced as Bill C-72 with the long title An Act to provide for the establishment of electoral boundaries commissions to report on the readjustment of the representation of the provinces in the House of Commons and to provide for the readjustment of such representation in accordance therewith.
The federal electoral redistribution of 2022 is a redistribution of electoral districts ("ridings") in Canada following the results of the 2021 Canadian census. The Constitution of Canada requires that federal electoral districts which compose the House of Commons undergo a redistribution of boundaries following each decennial Canadian census. The redistribution process began in October 2021; it is expected to be completed in September 2023. It is based on data obtained during the 2021 Canadian census.
In Canada, member of Parliament is a term typically used to describe an elected politician in the House of Commons. The term can also less be used to refer to an appointed member of the Senate.
The 45th Canadian federal election will take place on or before 20 October 2025 to elect members of the House of Commons to the 45th Canadian Parliament. The date of the vote is determined by the fixed-date provisions of the Canada Elections Act, which requires federal elections to be held on the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year after the polling day of the previous election. In addition to the statutory fixed election date provisions, Canada has a constitutional requirement specified in both section 50 of the Constitution Act, 1867 and section 4 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that elections for the House of Commons must be held no more than five years after the preceding election.
The Preserving Provincial Representation in the House of Commons Act, also referred to as Bill C-14, is an act of the Parliament of Canada that was passed by the 44th Canadian Parliament in 2022. It made a section 44 amendment to the Constitution of Canada to guarantee that the province of Quebec would not lose a seat in the 2022 Canadian federal electoral redistribution. The Bill was introduced as Bill C-14 with the long title An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867 .
Section 17 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is the provision of the Constitution of Canada which created the federal Parliament of Canada. The Parliament is composed of the Queen of Canada; the appointed upper house, the Senate of Canada; and the elected lower house, the House of Commons of Canada. Political power rests mainly with the elected House of Commons.
Section 37 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to the composition of the House of Commons, the lower house of the federal Parliament of Canada.
Section 52 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada which gives the federal Parliament the power to increase the number of members in the House of Commons, provided any increase respects the principle of proportionate provincial representation in the House of Commons.
