Practice by chapter
Federal elections: practice quiz and voting rules
A set of ten questions from the elections chapter, corrected as soon as you choose. Below, the voting conditions, the vocabulary of Parliament and the answers that look right but are not.
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Practice questions written by Radif Partners from the facts of the official guide. Not the official test.
The Federal Elections chapter of Discover Canada explains how Canadians choose their members of Parliament and how a government is formed; 15 of the 150 questions in our bank come from it. Three conditions let you vote federally: Canadian citizenship, being 18 or older on election day, and being on the voters' list, which Elections Canada, a non-partisan agency of Parliament, prepares from the National Register of Electors. The fixed-date law sets a general election on the third Monday in October, four years after the last one, although the Prime Minister can ask the Governor General to dissolve Parliament earlier. The country is divided into electoral districts, also called ridings, each electing one MP; the candidate with the most votes wins even without an absolute majority. A party with half the seats or more forms a majority government; with fewer, a minority. The largest other party is the Official Opposition. Voting is secret, done by marking an X in a circle. Clear rules like these are quick points toward the 15 out of 20 you need.
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Voting conditions and calendar
The test checks the exact list of conditions, so learn it word for word: citizen, 18 or over on election day, registered on the voters' list. Candidates follow a similar rule, since any citizen aged 18 or more may run, either for a party or as an independent. Federal general elections take place on the third Monday in October, four years after the previous one, unless Parliament is dissolved earlier at the Prime Minister's request. Our bank holds 15 questions on this chapter.
| Term | Meaning in the guide |
|---|---|
| Riding (electoral district) | area whose voters elect one MP |
| Voters’ list | built by Elections Canada from the National Register of Electors |
| Voter information card | says when and where you can vote |
| Secret ballot | nobody, not even your employer or family, may demand to know your vote |
| Majority government | governing party holds half the seats or more |
| Minority government | governing party holds fewer than half the seats |
| Official Opposition | opposition party with the most seats, also called the Loyal Opposition |
| Cabinet | Prime Minister and ministers; prepares the budget and proposes most laws |
From the vote to a government
In each riding the candidate with the most votes becomes the MP, even with less than half the votes cast. After the election, the Governor General normally invites the leader of the party with the most seats to form the government. That leader becomes Prime Minister and stays in office as long as the House of Commons keeps its confidence. The Prime Minister selects the ministers, usually from among the members of the House, and together they form the Cabinet, which runs the federal departments.
Other levels of government
Provincial, territorial and municipal elections also use the secret ballot, but their rules differ from federal ones. A municipal council is usually made up of a mayor (or reeve) and councillors, and it passes by-laws; municipalities handle local services such as snow removal, streets, firefighting and public transit. On First Nations reserves, band chiefs and councillors carry major responsibilities such as housing and schools.
Answers that look right
"Every five years." The fixed-date law sets four years. "Permanent residents can vote." Only citizens vote federally. "The winner needs more than half the votes." In a riding, most votes is enough. "The Official Opposition is the second party in votes." It is the opposition party with the most seats. "Laws passed by a city council are acts." They are by-laws. "Your employer may ask how you voted." The ballot is secret, though you may choose to share your vote.
Where to go next
The institutions behind these elections are covered in How Canadians Govern Themselves; the courts and police follow in The Justice System. Every elections question is listed with its answer in the question bank, and the timed mock test draws from all ten chapters at once. Facts summarized from Discover Canada.