At Stake in this Election:       

• The 338 seats in the House of Commons

Government Structure:

• Head of State: Queen Elizabeth II*
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Justin TRUDEAU**
• Assembly: Canada has a bicameral Parliament (Parlement) consisting of the Senate (Sénat) with 105 seats and the House of Commons (Chambre des Communes) with 338 seats.

* The Queen is represented by Governor-General of Canada Julie PAYETTE. The position of Governor-General is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister for a five-year term.

** After legislative elections, the Governor-General usually appoints the leader of the majority party or majority coalition to be Prime Minister[1].

Electoral System:

• Canada’s political system is a constitutional monarchy, and the Queen of Canada is the hereditary head of government[2].
• The Governor General will ask the leader of that party with the largest number of elected representatives to be the Prime Minister, to serve a maximum 5-year term. He or she must be able to maintain the confidence of the House in order to remain in power[3].
• In the Senate (Sénat) 105 members are appointed by the governor-general*.
• In the House of Commons (Chambre des Communes) 338 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve  maximum 5-year terms.**

* Members are appointed by the Governor General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister. No terms are set, and Senators may serve in office until the age of 75[4].

**There are 338 electoral districts, each with a corresponding seat in the House of Commons. Constitutionally, there can be up to five years between federal elections. As well, the Canada Elections Act specifies that a general election must be held on the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year following the previous general election. However, it also allows for an election to be called earlier.

Main Parties in this Election:

• Party: Liberal Party of Canada / Parti libéral du Canada
  • Leader: Justin TRUDEAU
  • Seats won in last election: 184
• Party: Conservative Party of Canada / Parti conservateur du Canada
  • Leader: Andrew SCHEER
  • Seats won in last election: 99
• Party: New Democratic Party (NDP) / Nouveau Parti démocratique (NPD)
  • Leader: Jagmeet SINGH
  • Seats won in last election: 44
• Party: Bloc Québécois (BQ)
  • Leader: Yves-François BLANCHET
  • Seats won in last election:10
• Party: Green Party of Canada / Parti vert du Canada
  • Leader: Elizabeth MAY
  • Seats won in last election: 1
• Party: People’s Party of Canada / Parti populaire du Canada (PPC)
  • Leader: Maxime BERNIER
  • Seats won in last election: N/A

Population and Registered Voters:

• Population: 37,411,000 (2019 est.)[5]
• Eligible electors:  Approximately 27,000,000 (2019 est.)

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 18,911,177[6]
• Is CANADA a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 Jul 1980)[7]
• Has CANADA ratified CEDAW: Yes (10 December 1981)[8]
• Gender Quota: No[9]
• Female Candidates in this election: Yes
• Number of Female Legislators: 91[10] (26.9%)[11]
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 12[12]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very low[13]

Disability Data:

• Is CANADA a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)[14]
• Has CANADA ratified CRPD: Yes (11 March 2010)[15]
• Population with a disability: 5,264,975 (2019 est.)[16]