Canada’s Democracy

Vocabulary Democracy House of Commons Riding(s) Members of Parliament Candidate To nominate Bill Ballot Constituent Opposition Parliamentarians Senate To sit

Elections O Elections must be held at least once every 5 years to decide who will represent Canadians in the House of Commons. O Canadian citizens vote for the candidates in their riding. O To be a candidate, he/she has to be nominated by part members in his/her riding. O The candidate who gets the most votes becomes a Member of Parliament (MP). O The party with most number of elected MPs across the country usually forms the Government. O The leader of that party becomes the Prime Minister.

To run O In the world of politics, the verb run has a specific meaning. O ‘To run in an election’ – you are competing with other candidates to represent your riding. O ‘run for office’, ‘running in an election’

Talk about it O Talk to the partner next to you. O Talk about the other ways the word ‘run’ is used (ex. Running to catch a bus) O Use a dictionary to find other examples. O Write them down!

End Parliament O The Prime Minister asks the Governor General to end (dissolve) Parliament and call an election when: the Government’s fixed 4 year term is complete the Government loses a vote on important bills (budget etc) a majority of MPs vote against important government measures (vote of confidence)

Campaigns O After election is called and before Election Day, each candidate competes with other candidates in the riding O Convince voters why he/she is the best choice O A candidate tells voters his/her messages in different ways signs / door-to-door / ads on TV, radio billboards and in newspapers / public meetings / debates

Dis - O prefix (un, pre, con, re) O opposite meaning of the root words O -advantage, -approve, -belief, -comfort, -connection, -satisfy etc disable, dismiss, dissolve, disappear, disagree

Have you ever participated in an election? O Some issues that are often important to many Canadians are crime, education, healthcare, employment and equal rights. O Think about what election issues are important to you.

Political Parties O Canada has many different political parties. O People in the same party usually have similar opinions about public issues. O Members of different parties often have different opinions – they sometimes disagree during elections and when Parliament is sitting. O Canadians have a choice in expressing different views by voting for a member from a specific party – party system

What about me? O You probably have opinions and ideas of what would be good for Canada. O Think about one issue that is important to you (the government, immigration, education, law and order etc) O Imagine you are creating a political party. What issues are important?

Voting O A Canadian citizen who is 18 years of age or older by Election Day can vote. O You must register with Elections Canada. O Election Canada will send you a voter information card to add you to the voter’s list. O Voters go to a polling station to vote. O Each voter is given a ballot. O You do not have to tell anyone who you vote. O Spoiled ballot – If you incorrectly mark the ballot or if you mark more than one name (it will not be counted)

What about your country? O Ask your classmates. Who was allowed to vote? How often were elections held? Were did the people vote? Was the ballot secret? How did people find out who had won?

Forming a Government O All the winning candidates are called Members of Parliament (MPs) O Opposition – The MPs who belong to the parties that are not forming the Government (Official Opposition – party with the second-highest number of elected numbers) O All Parliamentarians will discuss and debate new bills (suggested laws) and make decisions that impact every Canadian.

Who is your MP? O What riding do you live in? O What party does your MP belong to? O Do you know where your MP’s riding office is? O Your MP has people working in his/her office who can help you if you have a problem or if you have a complaint/question about government. O It is your MP’s job to listen to all his/her constituents.