How The Federal Government Is Formed

How the Federal Government is Formed

The first thing you need to start forming the federal government are political parties. There are usually four or five major parties that run in the election. The parties try and persuade voters by making phone calls and presenting television ads, they distribute brochures and flyers, put up signs and posters, go door-to-door, pretty much anything to get your vote. This is called an election campaign.

The country is divided up into ridings, which are formally known as constituencies. In each riding there is a candidate whose name can be found on the ballot. When the day comes to vote, people drive to the nearest polling station and fill out a ballot. The ballots are then counted and the candidate in each riding with the most votes wins.

If a political party has the majority of seats (155 or more) it becomes a majority government, if it has 155 or fewer seats it becomes a minority government. The leader of that party becomes the prime minister. The prime minister then chooses a cabinet from the leading party in the House of Commons.

Canada has a system of parliamentary government. The Parliament consists of three different parts: The Queen, The House of Commons and The Senate. Queen Elizabeth II is the official head of state and is represented by the Governor General, who has to sign all federal laws. This is why Canada is a constitutional monarchy.

The Senate is the “Upper House of Parliament”. The Governor General appoints the members of the Senate upon recommendation by the Prime Minister.

For the passage of legislation to occur, all laws must be approved by the House of Commons, the Senate and the Governor General before they can become law. Most parliamentary legislation is presented by the government.