Minority governments have happened throughout history but this election, according to the polls, will see the first minority government at the federal level since the Right Honourable Joseph Clark's Progressive Conservative minority of 1979-1980. That minority government was brought down by a vote of non-confidence as mentioned above.
In the early days of Canada before it was joined in confederation with New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Canada suffered from many minority governments and instability due to the fact that bills had to be passed with a majority of both assemblies, that of Canada East (Quebec) and that of Canada West (Ontario).
Since confederation, Canada has been under minority government (due to the addition of third parties) seven times.
1921-1925 - William Lyon Mackenzie King In the 1921 election, William Lyon Mackenzie King's Liberals won 116 seats, half the seats in the legislature, giving them one seat short of a Majority government. The Conservatives had 63 and the Progressives had 50 seats. The Western-farmer-based Progressives allied themselves with the Liberals to allow King to form a government. Both parties were in favour of Free Trade with the United States and tariffs between the two countries. The progressives then allied with the Liberals would, in 1942, formally merge with the Conservatives.
1925-1926 - William Lyon Mackenzie King and Arthur Meighan In the 1925 election, it was actually former Arhur Meighan who had the most seats (Cons 113, Liberals 102), however as it is in Parliamentary tradition, elections choose parliaments not governments and King was asked to form the government as he was able to count on the support of most of Parliament (with the help of the 24 Progressives). The alliance between the two parties wasn't as strong as was hoped and King asked the Governor General to dissolve the house. The governor General refused saying his constitutional duty was to allow the Conservatives to try to have confidence of parliament. Arthur Meighan became once again Prime Minister but was shortly defeated by a vote of non-confidence. After the 1926 election, King was able to count on the support of nine Progressive MPs (out of 20) to have a majority of support in the House.
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