Canadian elections likely in October

Look's like they're going to have an election up in Canada, too. Over at BlogHer, sassymonkey reports that elections are likely in mid-October. Their electoral system is much different from ours in the US. sassymonkey provides a helpful description of how the Canadian system works.

At telegraph.co.uk, you can read more details about the issues at stake in the upcoming Canadian election. Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative Party has only 127 seats in the 308 seat House of Commons. This minority government has been in power since January 2006.

Stephane Dion, the leader of the opposition Liberal Party, has focused his campaign on a "Green Shift" to fight global warming. The Telegraph says that "the slowing economy has replaced the environment as the main issue in the election."

Journalism Professor David Nayman of Ryerson University in Toronto is quoted as saying, "The real reason for calling the election is the economy is weak and they want to strike now while they feel a majority is within their grasp."

According to the Telegraph, the Conservatives are also facing opposition from the New Democrats, the Greens, and the French separatist Bloc Quebecois.

Andrew Heard of the political science department at Simon Fraser University has a Canadian Elections web site with detailed information on many topics, including this page on Women & Elections.