Dominance and Decline: Making Sense of Recent Canadian Elections

by Elisabeth Gidengil, Andre Blais, Joanna Everitt, Patrick Fournier, Neil Nevitte

Overview

Coming out of the 2000 Canadian federal election, the dominance of the Liberal Party seemed assured. By 2011 the situation had completely reversed: the Liberals suffered a crushing defeat, failing even to become the official opposition and recording their lowest ever share of the vote. Dominance and Decline provides a comprehensive, comparative account of Canadian election outcomes from 2000 through to 2008. The book explores the meaning of those outcomes within the context of the larger changes that have marked Canada's party system since 1988. It also shows how these trends were consistent with the outcome of the 2011 federal election. Throughout the book a variety of voting theories are revisited and reassessed in light of this analysis.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781442603912
Publisher:	University of Toronto Press
Publication date:	03/15/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Elisabeth Gidengil is Hiram Mills Professor and Director of the Centre for the Study of Democratic Citizenship at McGill University.

André Blais is Professor of Political Science and Canada Research Chair in Electoral Studies at the Université de Montréal.

Joanna Everitt is a professor and Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of New Brunswick.

Patrick Fournier is Professor of Political Science at the Université de Montréal.

Neil Nevitte is Professor of Political Science and cross-appointed as Professor at the School of Public Policy and Governance and the School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables
Acknowledgements
Introduction

1. Explaining Vote Choice
2. The Changing Social Bases of Party Support
3. Values and Beliefs
4. Party Loyalties
5. Does the Economy Matter?
6. The Issues and the Vote
7. Party Leaders: "The Superstars" of Canadian Politics?
8. Strategic Considerations
9. The Greens and the Perils of Being a "Single-Issue" Party
10. Electoral Dynamics in Quebec
11. The Shifting Contours of Canadian Elections

Appendix A: Estimating the Multistage Models
Appendix B: Values and Beliefs
Appendix C: The Determinants of Vote Choice
References
Index

What People are Saying About This

Lisa Young

This sophisticated yet accessible analysis of voting behaviour in recent Canadian elections makes sense of the remarkable collapse of the Liberal Party of Canada and the rise of the Conservative Party. The book tells a nuanced and compelling story of a changing electorate and a party unable to rebound from a scandal, and reminds readers of the volatility that makes Canadian electoral politics so fascinating.

Editorial Reviews

This sophisticated yet accessible analysis of voting behaviour in recent Canadian elections makes sense of the remarkable collapse of the Liberal Party of Canada and the rise of the Conservative Party. The book tells a nuanced and compelling story of a changing electorate and a party unable to rebound from a scandal, and reminds readers of the volatility that makes Canadian electoral politics so fascinating.—Lisa Young, University of Calgary

From the Publisher