2006 Canadian federal election facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
2006 Canadian federal election

← 2004 January 23, 2006 (2006-01-23) 2008 →
← List of House members of the 38th Parliament of Canada List of House members of the 39th Parliament of Canada →
308 seats in the House of Commons 155 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
Turnout	64.7% (3.8pp)
First party Second party   Leader Stephen Harper Paul Martin Party Conservative Liberal Leader since March 20, 2004 November 14, 2003 Leader's seat Calgary Southwest LaSalle—Émard Last election 99 seats, 29.63% 135 seats, 36.73% Seats before 98 133 Seats won 124 103 Seat change 26 30 Popular vote 5,374,071 4,479,415 Percentage 36.27% 30.23% Swing 6.64pp 6.50pp   Third party Fourth party   Leader Gilles Duceppe Jack Layton Party Bloc Québécois New Democratic Leader since March 15, 1997 January 24, 2003 Leader's seat Laurier— Sainte-Marie Toronto—Danforth Last election 54 seats, 12.39% 19 seats, 15.68% Seats before 53 18 Seats won 51 29 Seat change 2 11 Popular vote 1,553,201 2,589,597 Percentage 10.48% 17.48% Swing 1.91pp 1.80pp
Popular vote by province, with graphs indicating the number of seats won. As this is an FPTP election, seat totals are not determined by popular vote by province but instead via results by each riding.
Prime Minister before election Paul Martin Liberal Prime Minister after election Stephen Harper Conservative

The 2006 Canadian federal election was an important event in Canada. It happened on January 23, 2006. During this election, Canadians voted for people to represent them in the House of Commons of Canada. These elected people then form the 39th Parliament of Canada.

In Canada, a federal election is how citizens choose their government. People vote for a candidate in their local area, called a riding. The party that wins the most seats usually forms the government.

Map of the ridings and their popular vote

What Were the Results of the Election?

The 2006 election saw a change in which party led Canada. The Conservative Party won the most seats. This meant they could form a new government.

How Many Seats Did Each Party Win?

The House of Commons has 308 seats. To form a majority government, a party needs to win at least 155 seats. In this election, no single party won a majority. This is called a minority government.

Here's how many seats the main parties won:

• Conservative Party: 124 seats
• Liberal Party: 103 seats
• Bloc Québécois: 51 seats
• New Democrats: 29 seats
• Independent: 1 seat

Party representation in the 39th Canadian Parliament.      Conservatives (124)      Liberals (103)      Bloc Québécois (51)      New Democrats (29)      Independent (1)

After the election, Stephen Harper, the leader of the Conservative Party, became the new Prime Minister. He took over from Paul Martin of the Liberal Party.

What Was the Popular Vote?

The popular vote shows the total number of votes each party received across the country. It's different from the number of seats won.

Here's the percentage of the popular vote for the main parties:

• Conservative Party: 36.27%
• Liberal Party: 30.23%
• New Democrats: 17.48%
• Bloc Québécois: 10.48%
• Green Party: 4.48%

How Did Provinces Vote?

Voting results can look different in each province and territory. Some parties are stronger in certain parts of Canada.

How different areas voted in the 2006 election.

• The Conservative Party did very well in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
• The Liberal Party won many seats in Ontario and the Atlantic provinces.
• The Bloc Québécois mostly won seats in Quebec.
• The New Democrats gained more support in British Columbia and Ontario.

One interesting event happened after the election. David Emerson, who was elected as a Liberal in British Columbia, decided to join the Conservative Party. This happened before the new Parliament officially started.

Also, André Arthur was elected as an independent candidate. This means he did not belong to any major political party. He won his seat in Quebec.

Images for kids

• 

  Election signs for the Conservatives, Liberals and NDP in the snow in Ottawa South, showing Canada's mid-winter election.

• 

  This chart shows how much support each party had during the election campaign. You can see how the support for the Liberals and Conservatives changed over time.

See also

In Spanish: Elecciones federales de Canadá de 2006 para niños