Federal Elections

6 free practice questions from the chapter Federal Elections of Discover Canada, each with the answer and its source. The app and the workbook have all 32.

What do the Prime Minister and the Cabinet ministers prepare and propose?

  1. Provincial budgets and municipal by-laws
  2. The voters lists and the election dates
  3. Court rulings and Senate reports
  4. The budget and most new laws
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D. The budget and most new laws
The Cabinet drafts the budget and puts forward most new laws, and any member of the House of Commons can question its decisions.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

What is a majority government?

  1. When the party in power wins at least half of the popular vote
  2. When the party in power holds at least half of the seats in the House of Commons
  3. When the party in power holds at least half of the seats in the Senate
  4. When the party in power holds more seats than the Official Opposition
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B. When the party in power holds at least half of the seats in the House of Commons
What counts is the share of seats in the House of Commons. With half of them or more, the governing party forms a majority government.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

What usually happens when the party in power is defeated on a matter of confidence?

  1. The Speaker of the House dissolves Parliament and calls an election
  2. The Governor General appoints a new Prime Minister from the Senate
  3. The Official Opposition takes power without an election
  4. The Prime Minister asks the Governor General to call an election
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D. The Prime Minister asks the Governor General to call an election
If most MPs vote against a major government decision, the government falls. The Prime Minister then usually asks the Governor General, on behalf of the Sovereign, to call an election.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

Who can ask the Governor General to call an election earlier than scheduled?

  1. The Leader of the Opposition
  2. The Prime Minister
  3. The Chief Electoral Officer
  4. The Speaker of the House of Commons
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B. The Prime Minister
The fixed date is the rule, but the Prime Minister may go to the Governor General and request an earlier election.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

How is a House of Commons vote on the budget considered?

  1. A matter of confidence
  2. A free vote of conscience
  3. A routine procedural vote
  4. A non-binding consultation
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A. A matter of confidence
The government stays in office only while it keeps the confidence of most MPs, and a vote on a major issue like the budget puts that support to the test.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

Who may run as a candidate in a federal election?

  1. Canadian citizens who are 21 years old or older
  2. Any resident of Canada who is 18 years old or older
  3. Permanent residents who are 18 years old or older
  4. Canadian citizens who are 18 years old or older
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D. Canadian citizens who are 18 years old or older
Any Canadian citizen aged 18 or over can run for office. The people who do are called candidates, and one riding may have many of them.
Source, Discover Canada, chapter Federal Elections

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