Canada

Executive Dominance and Presidentialization

Bibliographic Data

ID23745829
AuthorsHerman Bakvis, Steven B Wolinetz
Year2005
Pages199-220
Publication date2005-03-10
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeCHAPTER
VenueThe presidentialization of politics (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherOxford University PressOxford (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1093/0199252017.003.0009
OpenAlexW2488044560
ISBN9780199252015
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited10

A parliamentary democracy based on the Westminster model, Canada does not qualify formally as a presidential system: The prime minister and other members of the political executive are responsible to a popularly elected House of Commons. Nonetheless, the Canadian prime minister enjoys wide-ranging powers that in practice are far more extensive than those enjoyed by prime ministers in other Westminster systems. The nature of the leadership selection process, strict party discipline and a fragmented opposition, help ensure prime ministerial dominance over both parliament and cabinet. So too do strong central agencies. While personalization and popularization of prime ministerial leadership is not as pronounced in Canada as in the UK, it is nevertheless an important factor. Prime ministers are beholden to very few interests in their parties, which they dominate. In the Canadian system, one finds many of the characteristics of presidentialization without any of the formal attributes. Federalism and the strength of the provinces act as the major constraint on prime ministerial power. In important respects, Canadian prime ministers are more powerful than presidents in some presidential systems.

Cabinet (room) · Dominance (genetics) · Federalism · Geography · House of Commons · Opposition (politics) · Parliament · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Presidential system · Prime (order theory) · Prime minister · Separation of powers · Sociology · Law · Political Systems and Governance · Public Administration

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