CIVICUS discusses Canada’s 28 April election with Beatrice Wayne, Director of Research and Policy at the Samara Centre for Democracy, a non-partisan civil society organisation (CSO) dedicated to strengthening Canadian democracy.

In March, shortly after succeeding Justin Trudeau as Liberal Party leader and prime minister, Mark Carney called a snap election, seeing an unexpected opportunity as Donald Trump’s renewed attacks on Canada galvanised public opinion. The campaign has developed into a much more competitive race than expected, and what once seemed a certain win for the opposition Conservative Party is now far from guaranteed. As well as Canadian sovereignty, economic recovery and energy policy have been key campaign issues.

Why are Canadians going to the polls?

This snap election follows Trudeau’s resignation as both prime minister and Liberal Party leader in March. His successor Carney called the early election shortly after taking office.

It’s worth noting that in Canada’s parliamentary system, voters don’t directly elect the prime minister. They vote for local members of parliament across 343 electoral districts, and the party winning the most seats forms a government, with their leader becoming prime minister.

What are the key issues in this campaign?

The electoral landscape features five major contenders: the Liberal Party, Conservative Party, New Democratic Party, Bloc Québécois and Green Party. Their platforms address economic recovery, climate policy initiatives including carbon pricing, living costs, housing affordability and, increasingly, national sovereignty.

Our VERIFIED project’s monitoring of political discourse reveals sovereignty’s unexpected prominence. This typically peripheral concern suddenly took centre stage following Trump’s provocative statements about annexing Canada as a ‘51st state’. This rhetoric triggered widespread indignation, fundamentally altering campaign dynamics. The hockey-derived phrase ‘elbows up’ has emerged as a rallying cry for Canadian independence across social media platforms.

All parties have rejected Trump’s rhetoric. Current political messaging emphasises protecting national independence, bolstering domestic industries and countering foreign influence, not exclusively from traditional concerns such as China, India and Russia, but now prominently including the USA.

This shift in the debate has had an impact on the polls, with the Conservative Party’s once commanding lead narrowing and the Liberal Party gaining ground.

How are social media platforms influencing the election?

Disinformation campaigns proliferating across US-based social media platforms are a threat to Canadian sovereignty and democratic institutions.

A recent public inquiry led by Justice Marie-Josée Hogue examined potential interference in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 elections. It found insufficient evidence of direct foreign manipulation by countries such as China, India and Russia. However, the investigation identified disinformation as democracy’s gravest threat, potentially undermining electoral integrity.

Civil society has urged political parties to set out their plans to tackle the problem. Carney advocates a regulatory approach, while Conservative party leader Pierre Poilievre has discussed measures to protect older people from online scams. But what’s needed is a comprehensive plan to address disinformation through comprehensive regulation of social media platforms and sustained investment in civic education.

What role is civil society playing in this election?

CSOs serve crucial functions in voter mobilisation, information dissemination and electoral transparency. In addition to our organisation, groups such as MediaSmarts deliver essential fact-checking services and media literacy education, while organisations such as Apathy is Boring, CIVIX and New Majority focus on youth civic engagement and participation.

Our common goal is help combat disinformation aimed at eroding trust in democratic institutions. Canada has a highly transparent voting process where ballots are hand-counted in front of party representatives. Nevertheless, false claims proliferate, including conspiracy theories regarding Dominion voting systems, a technology that’s not used in federal elections. We also advocate more meaningful engagement beyond the conventional debate format, more opportunities for voters to scrutinise party platforms and policies and more opportunities for candidates to speak – and listen to – their potential constituents.

Another key issue raised we’ve raised is reform of the candidate nomination system. Between 2004 and 2015, only 17 per cent of nominations involved genuine competition, with most candidates directly appointed by parties and over 70 per cent facing no opposition. The typical three-week nomination window effectively excludes independent and non-establishment candidates, undermining diversity.