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Canada's elections - October 14
Sheriff Roland:
Oops
Sorry David
I misread your question about "How long between the elections for Prime Minister?"
I thought you were asking when we were going to vote for PM (Prime Minister).
Oilgun set you straight on that one, however ...
Only recently (Harper did this) has the rule of 4 years maximum between election been in place. Often, past majority government did stretch the 4 years out to 5 years. And even once, during war time, elections were suspended all together.
Minority governments are not expected to last 4 years. In this case, Harper called the election before the 4 years had lapsed. Usually early election, during a minority government, occurs because the opposition loses confidence in the ruling party and votes to defeat it. Harper felt he had a chance to produce a majority government so he called this one. Course he messed up and we're still in pretty much the same minority government situation as 6 weeks ago ... except now he doesn't have to call another election for 4 more years - unless, of course, he gets defeated in the interim.
Sheriff Roland:
--- Quote from: oilgun on October 17, 2008, 01:47:00 pm ---But he has to within a year, doesn't he?
I just read in the Globe & Mail that Dion didn't listen to his advisers to not mention his "Green Shift" (aka: Carbon Tax aka: Tax increase) during the campaign. I guess it was hard to do when he kept getting grilled about it by Harper. I actually liked Dion but he seemed too naively honest for the job, lol!
--- End quote ---
Are you suggesting that Harper has to call an election within a year?
The answer is no. He has a 4 year mandate, same as always ... unless he gets defeated by the opposition - something that Dion has refused to do consistently these past (almost) 3 years.
Lumière:
I saw this not long ago...
Dion expected to call it quits Monday
By The Canadian Press
OTTAWA - Stephane Dion is expected to announce his resignation as Liberal leader on Monday.
Dion, who has been in seclusion since taking his party to its second-worst defeat in history, has scheduled a news conference for 2 p.m. ET Monday.
Liberal insiders say Dion has grudgingly accepted that he can't survive a mandatory leadership review vote, scheduled for May, and will announce his decision to step aside.
It's unclear if he will stay on as leader until a successor is chosen.
The Liberals were reduced to 76 seats in Tuesday's election, down from 103 in the 2006 vote.
Their share of the popular vote fell to 26.2 per cent - two points lower than the party's disastrous showing in 1984 under John Turner and only four points ahead of the its worst-ever result in 1867.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/081017/national/liberal_leadership_dion
oilgun:
--- Quote from: Sheriff Roland on October 17, 2008, 01:51:48 pm ---Are you suggesting that Harper has to call an election within a year?
The answer is no. He has a 4 year mandate, same as always ... unless he gets defeated by the opposition - something that Dion has refused to do consistently these past (almost) 3 years.
--- End quote ---
I got confused because I thought Harper had set Oct 2009 as a fixed-date for the next Elections. I guess my interpretation of fixed-date is different then Harper's. I read further and found out that the fixed-date law is just window dressing:
--- Quote ---Mr. Harper’s own fixed-election law, which set an October 2009 date for the next election, has left people confused about whether he had the ability to set a date of his choice if his minority government hadn’t been defeated in the Commons.
In fact, the fixed-date law is pure window-dressing that does nothing legally to change the prime minister’s control of election dates. The law itself contains a clause acknowledging that it doesn’t change the powers of the Governor General. (That would require a constitutional amendment.) But since those powers are exercised only on the advice of the prime minister, the fixed-date law leaves the prime minister legally free to advise the Governor General to ignore the fixed date. And the Governor General is legally bound to take that advice.
--- End quote ---
From: http://thechronicleherald.ca/Editorials/1077641.html
Lumière:
Possible Liberal leadership contenders
By The Canadian Press
OTTAWA - Names being mentioned as possible Liberal leadership contenders:
Michael Ignatieff: Toronto MP; former leadership front-runner. Supporters already working behind the scenes on a new leadership bid.
Bob Rae: Toronto MP; former NDP premier of Ontario; former leadership contender. Supporters working behind the scenes on a new leadership bid.
Gerard Kennedy: Newly elected Toronto MP; former Ontario cabinet minister; former leadership contender. No word on whether he will run again.
Martha Hall Findlay: Toronto MP; former leadership contender. Supporters say she will likely run again.
John Manley: A former deputy prime minister who ran briefly against Paul Martin for the leadership in 2003. He has been coy about whether he will run.
Frank McKenna: Former New Brunswick premier. A Frank4PM website has been set up in a bid to build pressure on McKenna to run but those close to him say he's unlikely to take the bait.
Justin Trudeau: Newly elected MP; eldest son of late Liberal icon Pierre Trudeau. Says he will not run.
Dominic LeBlanc: New Brunswick MP; fluently bilingual Acadian with deep roots in the party - father, Romeo, was press secretary to Pierre Trudeau, later an MP and cabinet minister, and eventually became Governor General. Testing the waters for support.
Ujjal Dosanjh: Vancouver MP; former NDP premier of British Columbia. Said he's considering a bid.
Martin Cauchon: Former cabinet minister.
David McGuinty: Ottawa MP, brother of Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty.
Denis Coderre: Montreal MP.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/081020/delection/liberal_leadership_quicklist
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