The Canadian General Election Of 1957

The book provides an account of conditions in Canada in 1957 as a background for its discussion of election issues and party organizations.

Canada's national social security system is a valued and integral part of our national character. However, with recent government cutbacks, the future of the welfare state is now in jeopardy. Focusing on the development of the Canada Pension Plan and medicare - the cornerstones of Canada's social net - Planners and Politicians is a timely examination of the Liberal Party's role in the development of national social policies.

Cet ouvrage couvre la période qui va de 1758 à nos jours.

Much of Canada’s modern identity emerged from the innovative social policies and ambitious foreign policy of Louis St-Laurent’s Liberal government. His extraordinarily creative administration made decisions that still resonate today: on health care, pensions, and housing; on infrastructure and intergovernmental issues; and, further afield, in developing Canada’s global middle-power role in global affairs and resolving the Suez Crisis. Yet St-Laurent remains an enigmatic figure. The Unexpected Louis St-Laurent fills a great void in Canadian political history, bringing together well-established and new scholars to investigate the far-reaching influence of a politician whose astute policies and bold resolve moved Canada into the modern era.

This work updates and enhances Howard Scarrow's Canada Votes (1962) with complete election data from the constituency level through the province, region, and nation for more than a half-century of Canadian political life since the benchmark election of 1935. Frank Feigert adds a description of the circumstances of all the elections since, and he gives background descriptions of the electoral systems in each province and territory. The result is a compendium of data and analysis that can be found nowhere else and which will be an invaluable sourcebook for students of Canadian political behavior.

Open and competitive elections governed by widely accepted rules and procedures are essential to the legitimacy of any political system. Elections assesses the history and development of five building blocks of the Canadian electoral regime: the franchise, electoral districts, voter registration, election machinery, and plurality voting. Arguing that on balance the Canadian electoral system is truly democratic, John Courtney demonstrates its vast improvements over the years. The right to vote is now generously interpreted. The process of redrawing electoral districts is no longer in the hands of elected officials. Voter registration lists include all but a small share of eligible voters. And those who manage and supervise elections on behalf of all citizens are honest and trustworthy officials. Using the recent push for reform of the plurality vote system as one example, Courtney also examines why certain electoral institutions have been amenable to change and others have not.