Unlike other federal political systems, Canadian political parties at the federal level are often loosely or not at all connected to parties at the provincial level, despite having similar names and policy positions.[1] One exception is the New Democratic Party, which is organizationally integrated with most of its provincial counterparts.
These parties have seats in the House of Commons, which is Canada's only elected assembly at the federal level. Members were elected in the 2021 Canadian federal election.
| Name and | Founded | Leader | Ideology | Political position | Largest MP caucus | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Party of Canada (LPC) French: Parti libéral du Canada (PLC) | 1867 | Justin Trudeau | (1940) | ||||
| Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) French: Parti conservateur du Canada (PCC) | 2003 | Pierre Poilievre | (2011) | ||||
| French: [[Bloc Québécois]] (BQ) | 1991 | Centre-left | (1993) | ||||
| New Democratic Party (NDP) French: Nouveau Parti démocratique (NPD) | 1961 | Jagmeet Singh | Centre-left to left-wing | (2011) | |||
| Green Party of Canada (GPC) French: Parti Vert du Canada | 1983 | Elizabeth May | Green politics | (2019) | |||
The following political parties are registered with Elections Canada and eligible to run candidates in future federal elections, but are not currently represented in the House of Commons.[2]
| Name | Founded | Ideology | Leader | Largest MP caucus | Most ridings contested | Political position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animal Protection Party French: Parti pour la Protection des Animaux | 2005 | Animal rights, environmentalism | Liz White | - | (2019) | Single issue | |
| Canadian Future Party French: Parti avenir canadien | 2024 | Centrism | Dominic Cardy | - | - | Centrist | |
| Centrist Party of Canada | 2020 | Centrism | A. Q. Rana | - | (2021) | Centrist | |
| Christian Heritage Party French: Parti de l'Héritage Chrétien | 1986 | Social conservatism, Christian right | Rodney L. Taylor | - | (1988) | Right-wing | |
| Communist Party of Canada French: Parti communiste du Canada | 1921 | Communism, Marxism–Leninism | Elizabeth Rowley | (1943) | (1953) | Far-left | |
| Free Party Canada French: Parti Libre Canada | 2019 | Vaccine hesitancy | Michel Leclerc | - | (2021) | ||
| Libertarian Party of Canada French: Parti Libertarien du Canada | 1973 | Libertarianism, laissez-faire | Jacques Y. Boudreau | - | (1988) | ||
| Marijuana Party French: Parti Marijuana | 2000 | Cannabis law reforms | Blair T. Longley | - | (2000) | Single issue | |
| Marxist–Leninist Party of Canada French: Parti Marxiste–Léniniste du Canada | 1970 | Communism, Marxism–Leninism, Anti-Revisionism | Anna Di Carlo | - | (1980) | Far-left | |
| Maverick Party | 2020 | Western separatism, conservatism, right-wing populism | Colin Krieger | - | (2021) | Right-wing | |
| People's Party of Canada French: Parti populaire du Canada | 2018 | Conservatism, right-libertarianism, right-wing populism | Maxime Bernier | (2018) | (2019) | Right-wing to far-right | |
| Rhinoceros Party (II) French: Parti Rhinocéros | 2006 | Satirical party | Sébastien CoRhino | - | (2019) | ||
| United Party of Canada | 2024 | Social conservatism | Grant Abraham | - | - | Right-wing | |
Eligible parties have applied to Elections Canada and met all of the legal requirements to be registered, other than running a candidate in a general election or by-election. Such parties are eligible to run candidates in federal elections but will not be considered "registered" by Elections Canada until they have registered a candidate in an election or by-election.[3]
At various points both the House of Commons and Senate have included non-party parliamentary groups, also called caucuses. These groups are unaffiliated with registered political parties, are not registered with Elections Canada, and do not run candidates in Canadian federal elections. Essentially, these parliamentary groups are equivalent to political parties in the legislative context, but do not exist in an electoral capacity.
Parliamentary groups in the House of Commons of Canada are typically made up of MPs that separate from a party over leadership conflicts. Notable past parliamentary groups in the House of Commons include the Ginger Group (1924–1932; split from Progressive Party), Democratic Representative Caucus (2001–2002; split from Canadian Alliance), and Québec debout (2018; split from Bloc Québécois).
The Senate of Canada is Canada's unelected upper chamber. It currently has three non-party parliamentary groups: the Independent Senators Group (ISG), the Canadian Senators Group (CSG), and the Progressive Senate Group (PSG). These three groups do not share a formal ideology, platform, or membership in any one political party; the caucuses primarily serve to provide organizational support and better leverage parliamentary resources. Conservative senators remain formally affiliated with the Conservative Party of Canada.[4] [5]
| Name | Founded | Ideology | Facilitator / Leader | Most senators | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent Senators Group French: Groupe des sénateurs indépendants | 2016 | Non-partisan technical group | Raymonde Saint-Germain | (2019) | ||
| Canadian Senators Group French: Groupe des sénateurs Canadiens | 2019 | Non-partisan technical group | Scott Tannas | (2024) | ||
| Progressive Senate Group French: Groupe progressiste du sénat | 2019 | Non-partisan technical group | Jane Cordy | (2021) | ||
| Conservative Party of Canada French: Parti conservateur du Canada | 2003 | Conservatism, economic liberalism | Pierre Poilievre | (2013) | ||
These are political parties which held seats in the House of Commons and either ceased to exist before Elections Canada was formed, or were once registered with Elections Canada but have become de-registered or ceased to exist due to dissolution.
| Name | Founded | Dissolved | Ideology | Largest MP caucus | Most ridings contested | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Abolitionist Party | 1993 | Social credit, monetary reform, social liberalism | - | (1993) | Anti-Confederation Party | 1867 | Opposition to Confederation (membership in Canada), Nova Scotia separatism | (1867) | (1867) | French: [[Bloc populaire]] | 1943 | Anti-conscription, Canadian nationalism, isolationism, French Canadian rights | (1943) | (1945) | Canada Party (I) | 1993 | - | (1993) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canadian Action Party French: Parti action canadienne | 1997 | [6] | Canadian nationalism, anti-globalization | - | (2000) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canadian Nationalist Party French: Parti nationaliste canadien | 2017 | White nationalism | - | (2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance French: Alliance réformiste-conservatrice canadienne | 2000 | Conservatism, right-wing populism, social conservatism[7] [8] [9] | (2001) | (2000) | Co-operative Commonwealth Federation French: Parti social démocratique | 1932 | Social democracy, democratic socialism, agrarianism[10] | (1948) | (1945) | Confederation of Regions Party | 1984 | Regionalism, conservatism | - | (1984) | Conservative Party (I) (1867–1942) ----Progressive Conservative Party (1942–2003) | 1854 | Canadian conservatism, British loyalism, Canadian nationalism (particularly under John Diefenbaker), Red Toryism, economic liberalism (under Brian Mulroney), moderation, occasional populism | (1958) | (1997) | Democratic Party | 1945 | - | (1945) | Direct Democracy Party | 2019 | Direct democracy | - | (2019) | Equal Rights | 1890 | - | (1891) | First Peoples National Party | 2005 | Aboriginal rights advocacy | - | (2008) | Labour Party | 1926 | Trade unionism, socialism | (1926) | (1921) | Labor-Progressive Party French: Parti ouvrier-progressiste | 1943 | Communism, socialism, legal front of the banned Communist Party of Canada | (1943–1945) | (1953) | Liberal-Progressive | 1925 | Nominated jointly by or aligned with both the Liberal Party and Progressive Party | (1926) | (1926) | Liberal Protectionist | 1925 | Anti-free trade, protectionism | - | (1925) | McCarthyite | 1896 | Anti-Catholic, anti-French, British imperialism | (1896) | (1896) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National Citizens Alliance French: Alliance Nationale des Citoyens | 2014 | White nationalism | - | (2015, 2019, 2021) | National Party (II) | 1991 | Canadian nationalism, protectionism, progressivism | - | (1993) | Nationalist (I) | 1873 | Socialism, nationalization of industries | (1889) | (1887) | Nationalist Conservative | 1878 | Used by Quebec Members in order to distinguish themselves from what has been referred by the party as the "British imperialist" reputation of the Conservative Party. | (1887) | (1887) | Natural Law Party French: Parti de la loi naturelle | 1992 | New age | - | (1993) | Newfoundland and Labrador First Party | 2007 | Newfoundland and Labrador advocacy | - | (2008) | Non-Partisan League | 1917 | Agrarianism | - | (1917) | Parti de la Démocratisation Économique | 1968 | - | (1968) | French: [[Parti Nationaliste du Quebec]] | 1983 | Quebec independence | - | (1984) | Party for the Commonwealth of Canada | 1984 | LaRouchite | - | (1984) | Parti Patriote | 2019 | Quebec nationalism, Quebec sovereignty, right-wing populism | - | (2021) | Patrons of Industry | 1890 | Pro-labour | (1896) | (1896) | People's Political Power Party French: Pouvoir Politique du Peuple | 2006 | Feminist, centrist, populist | - | (2008) | Pirate Party French: Parti Pirate | 2010 | Pirate politics | - | (2011) | Parti pour l'Indépendance du Québec | 2019 | Québec independence | - | (2019) | Progressive Canadian Party French: Parti Progressiste Canadien | 2004 | Red Toryism | - | (2006) | Progressive Party French: Parti progressiste----National Progressive Party----United Farmers | 1921 | Agrarian, free trade, progressivism | (1921) | (1921) | Progressive-Conservative | 1925 | (1930) | (1926) | Protestant Protective Association | 1892 | 1898 | Anti-Catholic, Anti-French | - | (1896) | Radical chrétien | 1958 | - | (1967 by-elections) | French: [[Ralliement créditiste|Ralliement créditiste / Union des électeurs]] | 1963 | Split from the Social Credit Party; see Social Credit Party of Canada split, 1963. | (1968) | (1965) | Reconstruction Party | 1935 | Keynesianism, national conservatism, isolationism | (1935) | (1935) | Reform Party French: Parti réformiste | 1987 | Fiscal conservatism, regionalism, social conservatism, democratic reform | (1997) | (1997) | Republican Party (I) | 1967 | - | (1968) | Republican Party (II) French: Parti republicain | 1971 | - | (1971 by-elections) | Rhinoceros Party (I) French: Parti Rhinocéros | 1968 | Satirical | - | (1980) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Social Credit Party French: Parti Crédit social | 1935 | Canadian social credit, Canadian conservatism, right-wing populism, social conservatism | (1962) | (1962) | Socialist Labour Party | 1945 | Socialism | - | (1945) | Socialist Party (I) | 1904 | Socialism, Classical Marxism, Anti-Leninism | - | (1911) | Socialist Party of Canada (II) | 1931 | Socialism, Classical Marxism, Anti-Leninism | - | (1958) | Stop Climate Change | 2019 | Environmentalism | - | (2019) | Strength in Democracy French: Forces et Démocratie | 2014 | Social democracy, regionalism | (2015) | (2015) | French: [[Union Populaire]] | 1979 | Quebecois independence (precursor of Bloc Québécois) | - | (1979) | United Party (II) French: Parti Uni | 2009 | Centrism | - | (2011) | United Party (III) French: Parti Uni | Centre-left | - | (2019) | United Reform | 1939 | Left-wing populism, reformism | (1939) | (1940) | Veterans Coalition Party French: Parti de la coalition des anciens combattants | Single issue | - | (2019) | Western Block Party | 2005 | [11] | Western separatism, paleoconservatism, libertarian conservativism | - | (2006) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
These caucuses were formed by sitting members of the House of Commons, but never ran in an election as a unified party.
These titles appear in official records, and may have appeared on ballots, but were only ever used as a personal brand by lone candidates.
These groups of Senators each sat together as a caucus, but were not affiliated with an active political party.
The following parties do not appear on the federal election archive.[13] They either did not run candidates in any election or ran candidates as independents.
The Marxist–Leninist Party of Canada unofficially uses the name "Communist Party of Canada (Marxist–Leninist)", but Elections Canada does not allow it to be registered by that name because of potential confusion with the Communist Party of Canada.
The second (and current) Conservative Party of Canada was a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party.
In the 1940 election, 17 candidates ran jointly with the Social Credit Party under the name New Democracy.