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Tom Monto

Canada's federal election system - the same as 150 years ago

Updated: Oct 8

Canada stands out for being among less than a handful of countries that have had the same political system for the last 150 years.


No government overthrow. No revolution. No civil war -- we have had a couple rebellions but never was a large swath of the country engulfed in the fighting.


No break from colonial rule/violent fight for independence, No (conquering) invasion.


Probably only UK shares that record.


Even Australia and New Zealand have been independent just since early 1900s.

Likely Canada has achieved this record due to:

- peaceful transition, modernization -

- granting women political equality peacefully in 1910s to 1929 period (Quebec provincially much later) and granting universal franchise to all adult citizens since 1970s -

and to accommodationist politics -

acceptance of Francophone identity (Napoleonic Code, etc.) at time of Conquest 1700s and official bilingualism starting in 1970s, and having been controlled by a colonial power (UK) that yielded independence without a armed struggle.


Co-operative government as under PR is surely in line with this tradition.


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Canada has used plurality elecitons system since 1867.

But that is not to say it has always been only single-winner contests.

Every province has, mostly or at one time or another, used multi-member districts to elect all or some of its MLAs.

Federally, we have had 11 ridings that were multi-member districts, electing two at a time)


so First past the post has not been only system used in provincial or Canadian federal elections over the last 150 years.


In that way Canada is like the UK...


The UK used to have a mixture of multi-member ridings and single-member districts, of districts enclosed in one place and districts containing a group of separate places across the countryside.


And currently Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland use non-FPTP systems to elect the members of their assemblies. They use Proportional Representation systems.


See my other blogs for more info on this.

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