1. SS 11 – Choosing a Government

2. Citizenship
Citizenship is the status of being a citizen of a country with all the rights and responsibilities associated with it.
Discuss: In what ways can citizens influence their government?

3. Voting Step 1: Nomination
Each political party selects one candidate to run in each electoral district* in the election.
Who chooses the candidates?
*Also called a riding.

4. Step 2: Campaigning
the process of trying to gain the support of Canadian voters:
Conferences
Rallies
television debates
TV and radio commercials
Meetings
Going “door to door” to meet citizens
* There are rules about how much money each party can spend campaigning
Former Liberal leader Stephane Dion campaigning.

5. Step 3: Voting
the process of choosing your representative in government.
This is called “casting your ballot”.
The Ballot is the piece of paper with your choice on it.

6. Vote (Franchise)
Voting is done by ‘secret ballot’.

7. To Vote in Canada You must be at least 18 years old
You must be a Canadian citizen
You must register to vote in the district where you live
You cannot vote if you are in prison, or you have lived outside of Canada for 5 or more years in a row. WHY?

8. A Voting Dilemma
Should I vote for the best candidate in my electoral district or …
Should I vote for the party with the leader I like the best or…
Should I vote the “lesser of two evils”, the party that has the best chance to win, but is not my first choice?
Discuss: What would you do?

9. Public Opinion Polls
During elections, the media constantly surveys the results and reports it to the public.
Political parties usually spend 15% of their election budget on polls.
Polling companies are hired to do research on the public.
Polls sometimes influence the public during an election. For example, someone might not go out to vote if it looks like there is already a winner.
BC votes last in Canada because of the Pacific Time Zone (3 hours behind Ontario)

10. Step 4: Tabulation
Tabulation is the process of counting all the votes after the ballots have been cast.
The winner in each electoral district is the candidate with the most votes
“first past the post” If

11. Group Project Make groups of 4 people
Follow directions to complete all the tasks
This project is out of 60 marks.
Read the instructions carefully!
Projects due Thursday!!

12. * The group that wins the election will receive a bonus mark as well as receive a free lunch with Mr. Austen at the Western Restaurant! *** I hope you like pizza! ***