Synopses & Reviews
On 2 May 2011, Canadians watched as the Stephen Harper Conservatives
won their first majority government, ending a string of minority
governments. Jack Layton led the NDP to its best performance ever,
becoming the Official Opposition for the first time in the
party's history, and Michael Ignatieff and the federal Liberals
had their worst showing to date. Even to the casual observer, it was
clear that this election marked a major shift in Canadian politics. In
reality, the country's political landscape and national party
system had been changing for quite some time.
Parties, Elections, and the Future of Canadian Politics
provides the first comprehensive account of political change in Canada
over the past two decades, particularly during the 1993, 2004, and 2011
federal elections. Contributors explore the changing landscape from
both historical and contemporary perspectives and speculate on the
future of the national party system. They discuss how parties have
evolved in response to new challenges, how elections are fought on
different terms than those of the past, and how these developments and
challenges have changed the way voters view political parties and
elections. By doing so, they make a crucial contribution to our
understanding of Canadian politics in the wake of a one of the most
tumultuous periods in the country's history.Amanda Bittner is an associate professor in the
Department of Political Science at Memorial University.
Royce Koop is an assistant professor in the
Department of Political Studies at the University of Manitoba
Contributors: Blake Andrew, Kelly Blidook, Matthew
Byrne, R. Kenneth Carty, William Cross, Munro Eagles, Patrick Fournier,
Elizabeth Goodyear-Grant, Allison Harell, Harold Jansen, Richard
Johnston, L.A. (Lisa) Lambert, J. Scott Matthews, Anthony M. Sayers,
Stuart Soroka, Russell Alan Williams, Lisa Young.
Review
"
Parties, Elections, and the Future of Canadian Politics will be welcomed by many in the political science community. Examining a diverse array of topics, the volume aims to uncover evidence of change and continuity in Canadian politics over the past quarter century. Scholars will value its many insights, as will students in courses on Canadian electoral politics and political parties."
- Paul Howe, author of Citizens Adrift: The Democratic Disengagement of Young Canadians
Synopsis
Parties, Elections, and the Future of Canadian Politics provides the first comprehensive account of political change in Canada over the past two decades, particularly during the 1993, 2004, and 2011 federal elections.
Synopsis
On 2 May 2011, as Canadians watched the federal election results
roll in and Stephen Harper's Conservatives achieve a majority, it
appeared that we were witnessing a major shift in the political
landscape. In reality, Canadian politics had been changing for quite
some time. This volume provides the first account of the political
upheavals of the past two decades and speculates on the future of the
country's national party system. By documenting how parties and
voters responded to new challenges between 1993 and 2011, this
book sheds new light on one of the most tumultuous periods in
Canadian political history.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Change and Continuity in Canadian Parties and
Elections / Amanda Bittner and Royce Koop
1 Has Brokerage Politics Ended? Canadian Parties in the
New Century / R. Kenneth Carty
2 Candidate Recruitment in Canada: The Role of Political
Parties / William Cross and Lisa Young
3 The Effects of Constantly Campaigning upon the
Canadian Parliament / Kelly Blidook and Matthew
Byrne
4 Constituency and Personal Determinants of MPs'
Positions on Social Conservative Issues in the 37th and 38th Canadian
Parliaments / Munroe Eagles
5 City Ministers: The Local Politics of Cabinet
Selection / Anthony M. Sayers
6 Women Candidates, Voters, and Legislators: A Gender
Perspective on Recent Party and Electoral Politics / Elizabeth
Goodyear-Grant
7 Revisiting the "Ethnic" Vote: Liberal
Allegiance and Vote Choice among Racialized Minorities / Allison
Harell
8 The Canadian Party System: Trends in Election Campaign
Reporting, 1980-2008 / Blake Andrew, Patrick Fournier, and Stuart
Soroka
9 Parties, Politics, and Redistribution: The
Constitutional and Practical Challenges of Politicized Apportionment /
Russell Alan Williams
10 Too Little, Too Soon: State Funding and Electoral
District Associations in the Green Party of Canada / Harold Jansen
and L.A. (Lisa) Lambert
11 When Partisans Are Attacked: Motivated Reasoning and
the New Party System / J. Scott Matthews
12 Coping with Political Flux: The Impact of Information
on Voters' Perceptions of the Political Landscape, 1988-2011 /
Amanda Bittner
13 Situating the Canadian Case / Richard
Johnston
14 Parties and Elections after 2011: The Fifth Canadian
Party System? / Royce Koop and Amanda Bittner