Two Cheers for Minority Government: The Evolution of Canadian Parliamentary Democracy

by Peter H. Russell

For decades Canadians have been led to believe that majority governments are the ideal outcome of our federal elections, allowing the winning party to fully implement its vision and act decisively. But in this timely exploration of Canada's history and its current political landscape, Peter Russell argues that Canadians are better served by minority governments than by false majorities, the too-common scenario in which a party wins a commanding majority of seats with fewer than half the votes cast. Though minority government may not quite deserve a full three cheers, our multi-party reality and the evolution of Canadian democracy require that we come to terms with it, and perhaps even embrace it.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction

184 pages, Paperback

Published February 15, 2008

About the author

Peter H. Russell is Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University of Toronto (Toronto, ON).

Reviews

[Nathan]

Every Canadian citizen should take the (albeit brief) time it takes to read this book. Russell is clear and concise, does not include any fluff or extraneous information, and delivers his excellent argument persuasively. Anyone who is truly paying attention with an intelligent eye to the state of Canadian governmental structures should be incredibly concerned about the direction we are headed. Trudeau has proven what I cried in fear about during Harper's reign as Majority leader: the power aggragated in the hands of the Prime Minister is nothing short of dictatorial. We are in desperate need of electoral and constitutional reform, as we continue down the dangerous road of extremist and polarized politics.

Politicians, with the support of their voters, attempt a zero sum game with parliament, shutting down all opposition when in power. The state that we are in, we might as well save the tax payer dollar by shutting down parliament after the election, since the Prime Minister rules without accountability to parliament regardless.

[Josiah]

Readable, and a good defense of parliament in the face of historical prime ministerial overreach. Some good suggestions for reform.

[Reana]

Useful information for my self imposed pre-election education. Civics class failed me but Peter H. Russell came through with the clear and easy to follow explanations.

[kjade]

Good premise but it was extremely heavy on the Canadian politic history.

[Au]

I love the content of this book, the subject matter is very near and dear to my heart and I learned a lot. However, Russell's writing style - lots of silly expressions - seems childish and just... goofy. The book lacks an authoritative voice that would have made it great.

[Bob MacKie]

Great book that challenges the oft held but bogus claim that one needs a majority government in Canada.