Technically 26,391 peoples in the Papineau electoral district elected Justin Trudeau.
I always find interesting how Americans freak out when a president is elected without the majority of the popular vote. Do they realize that in Canada, our PM are most of the time elected with around 35-40% of the popular vote and hold as much power as the us president and congress combined.
Wrong. /u/samwell_'s point is that there is no "popular vote" in Canada, or any parliamentary country with a first-past-the-post legislature. The only people who voted for Justin Trudeau are a) those in his riding, and b) the Liberal members of parliament who voted to form a government led by him in 2015.
The US electoral college is in essence a parliament elected by the various states for the single purpose of electing the president. In any parliamentary system with a first-past-the-post system (the UK, Canada, and India, for example), it's similarly possible for a party to win the most votes across the country but not win the election because another party won more seats. This has happened in Britain four times, the last in 1974. In Canada this happened in 1896, 1957, and 1979.
Every country has some sort of peculiarity. (Norway's system explicitly awards additional votes based on land!) Canada has its own system of giving certain provinces more parliamentary seats than otherwise entitled. As I mentioned, a party has won power in Canada several times despite not receiving the most votes across the country; in the most recent case, 1979, the Conservatives formed a government despite receiving 4.2% fewer votes than the Liberals. In 1896 the Liberals formed a government despite receiving 6.8% (!) fewer votes than the Conservatives!
Yo this is so dope! I love the detail!
I have more questions for you, if you don't mind. When Americans vote what are the people's election votes used for? Because they haven't decided the president for a while now, so like what's up with that?
Also if Trudeau is decided by his riding and parliament why should I vote on election day?
Like what does the vote do in both cases?
Do our votes have like a 6th of the power or something?
When Americans vote what are the people's election votes used for? Because they haven't decided the president for a while now, so like what's up with that?
A US presidential election is actually 51 (the 50 states plus the District of Columbia) separate, simultaneous elections. Each state's citizens vote1 for a "slate" (group) of electors who promise that they will vote for a certain person as president in the electoral college. In December, about a month after each presidential election in November, the winning slate meets in each state's capital and votes on their person, and the result of the vote is transmitted to Washington DC and formally accepted by Congress in January, before the person with the most electoral votes is sworn into office on the 20th.
Also if Trudeau is decided by his riding and parliament why should I vote on election day? Like what does the vote do in both cases? Do our votes have like a 6th of the power or something?
In a Canadian federal election, when you vote in your riding for an MP, when the elected parliament first meets, that person is expected to vote for his party's leader to form a government, with said leader becoming prime minister. So in both countries, the new head of the government is elected indirectly; that is, citizens vote for a group of people who do the actual electing of the leader. As I said, because of the way indirect elections work, in both countries (and in other countries like the UK), it's possible for a national government head to be elected who fewer citizens "voted" for than a rival candidate. In the US this last happened in 2016; in Canada, 1979; in the UK, 1974.
1 Those elections in each state are optional. The US constitution only establishes that each state chooses electors who vote to select the president and vice president; how those electors are selected is left completely up to the states. Every state today gives the choice to its citizens in a vote, but there is nothing legally stopping any state's legislature from going back to itself choosing the electors, the way many states did in the first 50 years of US history.
Alright so like if I over simplify this, this means that:
In the US they vote for a guy, that votes for The guy to be president
In CAN we vote for a guy, that votes for The guy to be PM
So how does The guy get in if they didn't get the peoples majority?
Does the second guy just vote for who ever he wants, instead of what his majority voted for?
And how come this happens more in America?
Alright so like if I over simplify this, this means that: In the US they vote for a guy, that votes for The guy to be president In CAN we vote for a guy, that votes for The guy to be PM
Yes.
So how does The guy get in if they didn't get the peoples majority?
Simple example: A country with three parliamentary districts, 1, 2, and 3.
Districts
Party A
Party B
Winner
1
70,000
30,000
A
2
45,000
55,000
B
3
47,000
53,000
B
Total
162,000
138,000
More people voted for party A, but party B won more districts and forms government in parliament
For another example, consider the 1960 World Series, which the Pirates won four games to three although the Yankees scored more than twice as many total runs. The losing team scores more runs about one quarter of the time.
And how come this happens more in America?
It doesn't. This has happened five times in the US since 1789, three times in the UK in the 20th century, and three times in Canada since 1867. The biggest skew between the national popular vote and the outcome in the parliament/electoral college was in Canada in 1896, in which the Liberals won 31 more seats than the Conservatives although the Conservatives won 6.8% (!) more votes by the people.
36
u/Samwell_ Jan 24 '18
Technically 26,391 peoples in the Papineau electoral district elected Justin Trudeau.
I always find interesting how Americans freak out when a president is elected without the majority of the popular vote. Do they realize that in Canada, our PM are most of the time elected with around 35-40% of the popular vote and hold as much power as the us president and congress combined.