Canada and the United States: Two different forms of government

In contrast to a separation of powers, the Canadian system of government is characterized by a fusion of the executive and legislative powers. As Ronald Landes explains in The Canadian Polity: A Comparative Introduction: “Whichever party has a majority of seats in the legislature also controls the executive branch; in other words, the same group of political leaders operate both the executive and legislative institutions of government.” This fusion is accomplished mainly through the cabinet, and is based upon the principle of responsible government. The Prime Minister and his cabinet are responsible to the legislature, and maintain control only so long as they maintain majority support. This is completely different from the American system, where each branch of government operates independently and the executive is not responsible to the legislature.

A final difference between the two systems lies in the electoral process. In the United States the President has no say in the timing of elections, since they are held at a set time. We already know that the next presidential election will be held on the first Tuesday in November, 2004. A classic example of this working to a President’s disadvantage came in 1980, when the election was held on the first anniversary of the seizing of the American diplomats by the Iranian government. President Jimmy Carter (a Democrat) subsequently lost the election to Republican Ronald Reagan.

By contrast, there is no set time for elections in Canada, although they must be held within a five-year period. This allows the Prime Minister considerable leeway in choosing when to call an election - presumably when the party is doing well in the polls and victory is almost assured. For example, in the fall of 2000 Prime Minister Chretien called a federal election a mere three and a half years into his mandate. While several factors undoubtedly influenced his decision (not the least of which was concern that his party would force him into an early retirement if he waited too long) part of the reason was that he didn’t want to give newly crowned Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day time to get more organized.

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