The timeline of elections in Canada covers all the
provincial, territorial and federal elections from when each province was joined
Confederation through to the present day. The table below indicates which party won the election. Several provinces held elections before joining
Canada, but only their post-Confederation elections are shown. These include:
New Brunswick's
first 21 elections, beginning in 1785 (the 21st Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick was elected in 1866, one year before Confederation, and continued until 1870, three years after Confederation);
The most recent election is shown with a box limited to five years of government, as this is the maximum length of office, as set by the
constitution. However, elections can be called at any time by an incumbent government. The federal government, nine provinces, and one territory have changed to
fixed election dates every four years. For these legislatures, the box is shown as running until the next scheduled election, but one could still be earlier if the government falls due to a
motion of no confidence. Nova Scotia and Yukon do not have fixed election dates in this matter.
^Coalition between Conservative and Liberal parties (who won 41 out of 82 seats each).
^The first New Brunswick general election was held pre-confederation and is not technically a Canadian election.
^Power went back and forth a few times surrounding the 1878 election. For most of that legislature, the Liberals controlled a minority parliament with the support of some Conservative members.
^Conservative and Liberal parties won 15 seats each (out of 30).
^Although Yukon was created in 1898, the
Territorial Council was wholly appointed from 1898 to 1900.
^The Conservative party won the most seats, but the Liberal party maintained power with support from the Progressive party without forming an official coalition. Partway through the
15th Parliament the Conservative Party took control of government, but was not able to obtain the confidence of the House. See
King–Byng Affair.
^The Liberal party won the most seats, but lost a motion of no-confidence shortly after the election resulting in a coalition between the Conservative and Progressive parties.
^
abcCoalition between Liberal and Conservative parties.
The table below shows how many elections each party has won in each province and territory. The Northwest Territories and Nunavut use
consensus government, which means there are no political parties. Of forty-two federal elections, twenty-three have been won by the Liberals, and eighteen by the Conservatives.
^Although the 1st NB election is shown in the main table, it took place a year before NB joined Confederation. As such it was not a Canadian election, and is thus excluded from this table.
^
abcdefghGovernment of British Columbia (2002).
"1987-2001 Supplement"(PDF). Electoral History of British Columbia. Elections BC. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
"Election Results". Election Almanac. Archived from
the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2009. (Results back to 1974)
"General Elections". Elections Yukon. Retrieved December 2, 2006. (Dates of all elections)
Donald Taylor.
"The Yukon Legislative Assembly". Canadian Parliamentary Review. Retrieved December 23, 2006. (Non-partisan nature of Legislative Assembly before 1974)
"Councils and Assemblies". Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly. Archived from
the original on February 14, 2006. Retrieved April 13, 2006. (1951 to date)