List of federal political parties in Canada
In contrast with the political party systems of many nations, Canadian political parties at the federal level are often only loosely connected with parties at the provincial level, despite having similar names and policy positions.[1] One exception is the New Democratic Party, which is organizationally integrated with most of its provincial counterparts including a shared membership.
Current parties
Represented parties
These parties have seats in the House of Commons, which is Canada's only elected assembly at the federal level. Members were elected in the 2021 Canadian federal election.
| Name | Founded | Ideology | Leader | MPs | Largest MP caucus | Political position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Party of Canada Parti libéral du Canada |
1867 | Liberalism, social liberalism | Justin Trudeau | 158 / 338 |
179 / 245 (1940)[lower-alpha 1] |
Centre to centre-left | |
| Conservative Party of Canada Parti conservateur du Canada |
2003 | Conservatism, economic liberalism | Pierre Poilievre | 117 / 338 |
166 / 308 (2011) |
Centre-right to right-wing | |
| Bloc Québécois | 1991 | Quebec sovereignty, social democracy, regionalism | Yves-François Blanchet | 32 / 338 |
54 / 295 (1993)[lower-alpha 2] |
Centre-left | |
| New Democratic Party Nouveau Parti démocratique |
1961 | Social democracy | Jagmeet Singh | 25 / 338 |
103 / 308 (2011) |
Centre-left to left-wing | |
| Green Party of Canada Le Parti Vert du Canada |
1983 | Green politics | Elizabeth May | 2 / 338 |
3 / 338 (2019) |
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Registered parties
The following political parties are registered with Elections Canada and eligible to run candidates in future federal elections, but are not currently represented in the House of Commons.[2]
Eligible parties
Eligible parties have applied to Elections Canada and met all of the legal requirements to be registered, other than running a candidate in a general election or by-election.[3] Such parties are eligible to run candidates in federal elections but will not be considered "registered" by Elections Canada until they have registered a candidate in an election or by-election.[3] As of September 2023, there are no eligible eligible parties[2]
Non-party parliamentary groups
At various points both the House of Commons and Senate have included non-party parliamentary groups, also called caucuses. These groups are unaffiliated with registered political parties, are not registered with Elections Canada, and do not run candidates in Canadian federal elections. Essentially, these parliamentary groups are equivalent to political parties in the legislative context, but do not exist in an electoral capacity.
Parliamentary groups in the House of Commons of Canada are typically made up of MPs that separate from a party over leadership conflicts. Notable past parliamentary groups in the House of Commons include the Ginger Group (1924–1932; split from Progressive Party), Democratic Representative Caucus (2001–2002; split from Canadian Alliance), and Québec debout (2018; split from Bloc Québécois).
Senate caucuses
The Senate of Canada is Canada's unelected upper chamber. It currently has three non-party parliamentary groups: the Independent Senators Group (ISG), the Canadian Senators Group (CSG), and the Progressive Senate Group (PSG). These three groups do not share a formal ideology, platform, or membership in any one political party; the caucuses primarily serve to provide organizational support and better leverage parliamentary resources. Conservative senators remain formally affiliated with the Conservative Party of Canada.[4][5]
| Name | Founded | Ideology | Facilitator/Leader | Senators as of 2023 | Most senators | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent Senators Group Groupe des sénateurs indépendants |
2016 | Non-partisan technical group | Raymonde Saint-Germain | 39 / 105 |
59 / 105 (2019) | |
| Conservative Party of Canada Parti conservateur du Canada |
2003 | Conservatism, economic liberalism | Pierre Poilievre | 15 / 105 |
65 / 105 (2013) | |
| Progressive Senate Group Groupe progressiste du sénat |
2019 | Non-partisan technical group | Jane Cordy | 11 / 105 |
14 / 105 (2021) | |
| Canadian Senators Group Groupe des sénateurs Canadiens |
2019 | Non-partisan technical group | Scott Tannas | 15 / 105 |
15 / 105 (2023) | |
Historical parties
Registered parties
These are political parties which held seats in the House of Commons and either ceased to exist before Elections Canada was formed, or were once registered with Elections Canada but have become de-registered or ceased to exist due to dissolution.[2]
| Name | Founded | Dissolved | Ideology | Largest MP caucus | Most ridings contested | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abolitionist Party | 1993 | 1996 | Social credit, monetary reform, social liberalism | — | 80 / 295 (1993) | |
| Anti-Confederation Party | 1867 | 1867 | Opposition to Confederation (membership in Canada), Nova Scotia separatism | 18 / 181 (1867) |
20 / 181 (1867) | |
| Bloc populaire | 1943 | 1949 | Anti-conscription, Canadian nationalism, isolationism, French Canadian rights | 4 / 245 (1943) |
35 / 245 (1945) | |
| Canada Party (I) | 1993 | 1996 | — | 56 / 295 (1993) | ||
| Canadian Action Party Parti action canadienne |
1997 | 2017[6] | Canadian nationalism, anti-globalization | — | 70 / 301 (2000) | |
| Canadian Nationalist Party Parti nationaliste canadien |
2017 | 2022 | White nationalism | — | 3 / 338 (2019) | |
| Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne |
2000 | 2003 | Conservatism, right-wing populism, social conservatism[7][8][9] | 66 / 301 (2001) |
298 / 301 (2000) | |
| Co-operative Commonwealth Federation Parti social démocratique |
1932 | 1961 | Social democracy, democratic socialism, agrarianism[10] | 31 / 245 (1948) |
205 / 245 (1945) | |
| Confederation of Regions Party | 1984 | 1988 | Regionalism, conservatism | — | 55 / 282 (1984) | |
| Conservative Party (I) (1867–1942)
Progressive Conservative Party (1942–2003) |
1854 | 2003 | Canadian conservatism, British loyalism, Canadian nationalism (particularly under John Diefenbaker), Red Toryism, economic liberalism (under Brian Mulroney), moderation, occasional populism | 209 / 265 (1958)[lower-alpha 4] |
301 / 301 (1997) | |
| Democratic Party | 1945 | 1945 | — | 5 / 245 (1945) | ||
| Direct Democracy Party | 2019 | 2023 | Direct democracy | — | 7 / 338 (2019) | |
| Equal Rights | 1890 | 1891 | — | 2 / 215 (1891) | ||
| First Peoples National Party | 2005 | 2013[6] | Aboriginal rights advocacy | — | 6 / 308 (2008) | |
| Labour Party | 1926 | 1968 | Trade unionism, socialism | 4 / 245 (1926) |
28 / 235 (1921) | |
| Labor-Progressive Party Parti ouvrier-progressiste |
1943 | 1959 | Communism, socialism, legal front of the banned Communist Party of Canada | 2 / 245 (1943-1945) |
100 / 245 (1953) | |
| Liberal-Progressive | 1925 | 1955 | Nominated jointly by or aligned with both the Liberal Party and Progressive Party | 8 / 245 (1926) |
12 / 245 (1926) | |
| Liberal Protectionist | 1925 | 1930 | Anti-free trade, protectionism | — | 2 / 245 (1925) | |
| McCarthyite | 1896 | 1898 | Anti-Catholic, anti-French, British imperialism | 1 / 213 (1896)[lower-alpha 5] |
11 / 213 (1896) | |
| National Citizens Alliance Alliance Nationale des Citoyens |
2014 | 2023 | White nationalism | — | 4 / 338 (2015, 2019, 2021) | |
| National Party (II) | 1991 | 1994 | Canadian nationalism, protectionism, progressivism | — | 170 / 295 (1993) | |
| Nationalist (I) | 1873 | 1910 | Socialism, nationalization of industries | 2 / 215 (1889) |
6 / 215 (1887) | |
| Nationalist Conservative | 1878 | 1911 | Used by Quebec Members in order to distinguish themselves from what has been referred by the party as the "British imperialist" reputation of the Conservative Party. | 2 / 215 (1887) |
2 / 215 (1887) | |
| Natural Law Party Parti de la loi naturelle |
1992 | 2004[6] | New age | — | 231 / 295 (1993) | |
| Newfoundland and Labrador First Party | 2007 | 2011[6] | Newfoundland and Labrador advocacy | — | 3 / 308 (2008) | |
| Non-Partisan League | 1917 | 1917 | Agrarianism | — | 3 / 235 (1917) | |
| Parti de la Démocratisation Économique | 1968 | 1968 | — | 5 / 264 (1968) | ||
| Parti Nationaliste du Quebec | 1983 | 1987 | Quebec independence | — | 74 / 282 (1984) | |
| Party for the Commonwealth of Canada | 1984 | 1993 | LaRouchite | — | 66 / 282 (1984) | |
| Parti Patriote | 2019 | 2022 | Quebec nationalism, Quebec sovereignty, right-wing populism | — | 2 / 338 (2021) | |
| Patrons of Industry | 1890 | 1900 | Pro-labour | 2 / 213 (1896) |
31 / 213 (1896) | |
| People's Political Power Party Pouvoir Politique du Peuple |
2006 | 2011[6] | Feminist, centrist, populist | — | 2 / 308 (2008) | |
| Pirate Party Parti Pirate |
2010 | 2017 | Pirate politics | — | 10 / 308 (2011) | |
| Parti pour l'Indépendance du Québec | 2019 | 2022 | Québec independence | — | 13 / 338 (2019) | |
| Progressive Canadian Party Parti Progressiste Canadien |
2004 | 2019 | Red Toryism | — | 25 / 308 (2006) | |
| Progressive Party Parti progressiste National Progressive Party |
1921 | 1948 | Agrarian, free trade, progressivism | 58 / 235 (1921) |
137 / 235 (1921) | |
| Progressive-Conservative | 1925 | 1935 | 1 / 245 (1930) |
2 / 245 (1926) | ||
| Protestant Protective Association | 1892 | 1898 | Anti-Catholic | — | 5 / 213 (1896) | |
| Radical chrétien | 1958 | 1967 | — | 3 / 265 (1967 by-elections) | ||
| Ralliement créditiste / Union des électeurs | 1963 | 1971 | Split from the Social Credit Party; see Social Credit Party of Canada split, 1963. | 14 / 264 (1968) |
77 / 265 (1965) | |
| Reconstruction Party | 1935 | 1938 | Keynesianism, national conservatism, isolationism | 1 / 245 (1935) |
172 / 245 (1935) | |
| Reform Party Parti réformiste |
1987 | 2000 | Fiscal conservatism, regionalism, social conservatism, democratic reform | 60 / 301 (1997) |
277 / 301 (1997) | |
| Republican Party (I) | 1967 | 1968 | — | 2 / 264 (1968) | ||
| Republican Party (II) Parti republicain |
1971 | 1971 | — | 2 / 264 (1971 by-elections) | ||
| Rhinoceros Party (I) Parti Rhinocéros |
1968 | 1993 | Satirical | — | 121 / 282 (1980) | |
| Social Credit Party Parti Crédit social |
1935 | 1993 | Canadian social credit, Canadian conservatism, right-wing populism, social conservatism | 30 / 265 (1962) |
230 / 265 (1962) | |
| Socialist Labour Party | 1945 | 1968 | Socialism | — | 2 / 245 (1945) | |
| Socialist Party (I) | 1904 | 1925 | Socialism | — | 6 / 221 (1911) | |
| Socialist Party of Canada (II) | 1931 | 1961 | — | 2 / 265 (1958) | ||
| Stop Climate Change | 2019 | 2021 | Environmentalism | — | 2 / 338 (2019) | |
| Strength in Democracy Forces et Démocratie |
2014 | 2016[6] | Social democracy, regionalism | 2 / 338 (2015) |
17 / 338 (2015) | |
| Union Populaire | 1979 | 1981 | Quebecois independence (precursor of Bloc Québécois) | — | 69 / 282 (1979) | |
| United Party (II) Parti Uni |
2009 | 2016[6] | Centrism | — | 3 / 308 (2011) | |
| United Party (III) Parti Uni |
2018 | 2020 | Centre-left | — | 4 / 338 (2019) | |
| United Reform | 1939 | 1940 | Left-wing populism, reformism | 2 / 245 (1939) |
5 / 245 (1940) | |
| Veterans Coalition Party Parti de la coalition des anciens combattants |
2019 | 2023 | Single issue | — | 25 / 338 (2019) | |
| Western Block Party | 2005 | 2014[11] | Western separatism, paleoconservatism, libertarian conservativism | — | 4 / 308 (2006) | |
Non-party parliamentary groups
These caucuses were formed by sitting members of the House of Commons, but never ran in an election as a unified party.
| Name | Founded | Dissolved | Ideology | Largest caucus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Representative Caucus | 2001 | 2002 | Formed when several MPs left the Canadian Alliance due to the leadership of Stockwell Day. The group was dissolved after Day lost the party leadership to Stephen Harper. | 13 / 301 (2002) | |
| Ginger Group | 1924 | 1932 | Progressivism, socialism | 15 / 245 (1926) | |
| Liberal–Unionist | 1917 | 1921 | Members of the Liberal Party who supported Robert Borden's coalition government. | 11 / 235 (1917) | |
| Nationalist Liberal (I) | 1867 | 1921 | 1 / 215 (1891) | ||
| Parti canadien | 1942 | 1944 | Anti-conscription | 1 / 245 (1942) | |
| Québec debout | 2018 | 2018 | Formed when several MPs left the Bloc Québécois due to the leadership of Martine Ouellet. The group was dissolved after Ouellet lost a leadership review vote and resigned. | 7 / 338 (2018) | |
Designations used by single candidates
These titles appear in official records, and may have appeared on ballots, but were only ever used as a personal brand by lone candidates.
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Senate technical groups
These groups of Senators each sat together as a caucus, but were not affiliated with an active political party.
| Name | Founded | Dissolved | Ideology | Largest caucus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal–Unionist | 1917 | 1921 | Members of the Liberal Party who supported Robert Borden's coalition government. | 4 / 96 (1919) | |
| Nationalist Liberal (I) | 1867 | 1921 | 2 / 72 (1867) | ||
| Senate Liberal Caucus Caucus libéral du Sénat |
2014 | 2019 | Members of the Liberal Party who formed their own caucus after Justin Trudeau removed all senators from the Liberal Party's parliamentary caucus. | 32 / 105 (2014) | |
| Senate Progressive Conservative Caucus Caucus progressiste-conservateur du Sénat |
2003 | 2016 | Members of the former Progressive Conservative Party who retained the caucus name after the party itself dissolved in 2003. | 5 / 105 (2005) | |
Pre-confederation political parties
- Parties in the Dominion of Newfoundland
- Confederate Association
- Conservative Party (including Reform Party, Tory Party, and Liberal-Conservative-Progressive Party)
- Economic Union Party
- Fishermen's Protective Union (including Union Party)
- Liberal Party (including Liberal Reform Movement and Liberal-Progressive Party)
- Newfoundland People's Party (including Liberal-Labour-Progressive Party)
- Responsible Government League
- United Newfoundland Party
- Parties in Lower Canada and Canada East (now Quebec)
- Parties in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island
- Parties in Upper Canada and Canada West (now Ontario)
Unofficial designations and parties who never ran candidates
The following parties do not appear on the federal election archive.[13] They either did not run candidates in any election or ran candidates as independents.
- Aboriginal Peoples Party of Canada (founded in 2005)
- Action Canada (founded in 1971)
- Canadian Labour Party, 1917–1929
- Canadian Party for Renewal, 1993
- Canadian Union of Fascists, 1930s
- Christian Credit Party, 1982–1983
- Christian Freedom Party of Canada, c. 1988 – c. 1996 (an extension of the Social Credit Party)
- Movement for an Independent Socialist Canada, 1974
- National Party of Canada (I), 1979–1980s
- New Capitalist Party, 1965
- New Constitution Party of Canada (an unregistered party founded in 2015)
- North American Labour Party, 1970s
- National Unity Party, 1938–1949
- People's Co-operative Commonwealth Federation 1945
- Option Canada (founded in 1991)
- Revolutionary Workers League, 1977–1989
- Workers' Communist Party of Canada, 1972–1980
Name changes
- Communist Party
The Communist Party of Canada changed its name multiple times in its history. It was founded as the Communist Party of Canada in 1921. It was underground until 1924, and founded a public face, Workers' Party of Canada, from 1922 until 1924 when the Communist Party was legalized. From 1938 until 1943 its candidates ran under the banner Unity or United Progressive, and won two seats, both in Saskatchewan. The Communist Party was again banned in 1940, but from 1943 operated under the name Labor-Progressive Party. It won one seat under this name in a 1943 by-election, which it retained in 1945. In 1959 it reverted to the name Communist Party of Canada and has kept that name to the present.
The Marxist–Leninist Party of Canada unofficially uses the name "Communist Party of Canada (Marxist–Leninist)", but Elections Canada does not allow it to be registered by that name because of potential confusion with the Communist Party of Canada.
- Labour Party
Labour Party candidates ran under numerous different designations:
- Conservative-Labour (1872–1875)
- Farmer Labour
- Farmer-United Labour
- Labour-Farmer
- Liberal-Labour (1926–1968)
- National Labour (1940)
- United Farmers-Labour (1920)
- United Farmers of Ontario-Labour (1919–1940)
- Liberal Party
During Robert Borden's coalition government of 1917–1920, the Liberal Party of Canada split into two groups: the Liberal–Unionist who supported the coalition and the Laurier Liberals who opposed it.
- Liberal-Progressive
Some Liberal-Progressive candidates used the designations:
- Liberal-Labour-Progressive or
- National Liberal Progressive.
- New Democratic Party
The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation used the name New Party from 1958 to 1961 while it was transitioning to become the New Democratic Party. In French, the party used a literal translation of its name, Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, from until 1955.
- Conservative Party
The first Conservative Party used several different names during its existence:
- Liberal-Conservative Party (some MPs until 1911),
- Unionist Party (1917–1921),
- National Liberal and Conservative Party (1920–1921),
- National Government (1940),
- Progressive Conservative Party (1942–2003)
The second (and current) Conservative Party of Canada was a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party.
- Progressive Party and United Farmers
Some candidates for the Progressive Party of Canada used United Farmer designations:
- Farmer (1925 & 1930),
- United Farmers of Canada,
- United Farmers of Alberta, or
- United Farmers of Ontario.
- Rhinoceros Party
The first Rhinoceros Party disbanded in 1993. When it was revived in 2006 it used the name "neorhino.ca". The party changed its name to Rhinoceros Party in 2010.
- Social Credit Party and Ralliement créditiste
Some Ralliement créditiste used the name Ralliement des créditistes from 1963 to 1967. One candidate used the designation Candidats des électeurs in 1957 and 1958. Others used the name Union des électeurs, although this was never formally registered.
In the 1940 election, 17 candidates ran jointly with the Social Credit Party under the name New Democracy.
Notes
- In 2015, the Liberal Party held 184 seats; the most in its history. However, at that time there were 338 seats total, so the proportion of seats held by the party was smaller than it was in 1940.
- The Bloc Québécois also won 54 seats in the 2004 election, but at the time there were 308 seats total, so the proportion of seats held by the party was smaller than it was in 1993.
- Members used the temporary party name Labor-Progressive Party.
- In 1984 the Progressive Conservative Party held 211 seats; the most in its history. However, at that time there were 282 seats total, so the proportion of seats held by the party was smaller than it was in 1958.
- Dalton McCarthy won in two ridings, but could only accept one.
References
- Christian, William; Jansen, Harold (December 11, 2015). "Party System". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
Although there are often provincial parties with similar names or aims as national political parties, Canadian parties are not generally well-integrated ... Despite the general lack of formal ties, however, there is often significant overlap between supporters of provincial and national parties of the same name.
- Elections Canada (January 11, 2021). "Registered Political Parties and Parties Eligible for Registration". Elections Canada. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
- Elections Canada (September 21, 2023). "Registration of Federal Political Parties". Elections Canada. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
- Jesse Snyder; Brian Platt (November 4, 2019). "New Senate bloc looking to protect 'regional interests' could hamper Trudeau's efforts to pass legislation". National Post. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
- Tasker, John Paul (November 14, 2019). "There's another new faction in the Senate: the Progressive Senate Group". CBC News. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- Canada, Elections (January 13, 2023). "Registered Political Parties and Parties Eligible for Registration". www.elections.ca.
- Howard A. Leeson (2001). Saskatchewan Politics: Into the Twenty-first Century. University of Regina Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-0-88977-131-4.
- Janet Miron (2009). A History of Human Rights in Canada: Essential Issues. Canadian Scholars' Press. p. 208. ISBN 978-1-55130-356-7.
- Carol Gould; Pasquale Paquino (January 1, 2001). Cultural Identity and the Nation-state. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-8476-9677-2.
- Seymour Martin Lipset (1971). Agrarian Socialism: The Cooperative Commonwealth Federation in Saskatchewan : a Study in Political Sociology. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-02056-6. Retrieved August 20, 2012.
- "Deregistration of Western Block Party". Elections Canada. January 28, 2014. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
- "Deregistration of Western Block Party". Elections Canada. January 13, 2023.
- "Elections and Candidates". lop.parl.ca.
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