Why Canadian Voters Cannot Choose Their Prime Minister

Canada is all set to vote in federal elections on April 28, but the country doesn’t elect its Prime Minister. Not at least directly, a fact that often surprises outsiders.

Mark Carney, the newly appointed Liberal leader, is facing a direct challenge from Pierre Poilievre, the Conservative challenger riding a wave of populist energy. Despite dominating headlines and debates, a vast majority of voters won’t see their names on the ballot.

In Canada, voters do not directly choose the Prime Minister – unlike countries such as the United States, where citizens vote directly for their President. 

Instead, Canadians vote for a local Member of Parliament (MP) to represent their specific riding (electoral district) in the House of Commons, which currently has 343 seats. The system is identical to India’s parliamentary democracy where the electorate votes for candidates representing various political parties, which then either stake claim to form the government individually or with their coalition partners. 

HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS

On election day, each Canadian casts one vote, and it’s for a candidate running in their local riding.

The country is divided into ridings (similar to constituencies or districts). The candidate with the most votes in each riding becomes an MP.

The political party that wins the most seats – either a majority (over 171 seats) or enough to form a coalition or minority government – gets the first chance to lead the nation.

The leader of that party then becomes the Prime Minister.

So, the Prime Minister is not elected by the public at large. They get elected as an MP and then lead the party with the most seats.

With the Liberals and Conservatives neck-and-neck in national polls, this could come down to just a few ridings. Key battlegrounds like Burnaby Central in British Columbia and Trois-Rivieres in Quebec may well decide whether Canada sees a majority, a minority, or even a coalition government in 2025.

The Liberals have 43.1% support, while the Tories are at 38.4%, one point better than two weeks ago, according to the CBC, the Canadian public broadcaster, data.

NUMBER OF VOTERS

At least 27,642,171 people, about 72% of Canada’s total population, are above the age of 18 and hence eligible to vote, according to Elections Canada. Ahead of April 28, a record 7.3 million people have already cast their ballots in advanced voting, per official figures.

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE VOTE

Canada heads to the polls on April 28. While preliminary results are expected on election night, the official count takes a bit longer. Elections Canada, the non-partisan agency responsible for managing the elections, will take about two to three days after voting day to validate and certify the results before declaring them final.