Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada (LPC; French: Parti libéral du Canada, PLC) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,[6][7][8] and generally sits at the centre[6][9][10] to centre-left[10][11] of the Canadian political spectrum, with their main rival, the Conservative Party, positioned to their right and the New Democratic Party positioned to their left.[6][12][13] The party is described as "big tent",[14] practising "brokerage politics",[b] attracting support from a broad spectrum of voters.[20] The Liberal Party is the longest-serving and oldest active federal political party in the country, and has dominated federal politics of Canada for much of its history, holding power for almost 70 years of the 20th century.[21][12] As a result, it has sometimes been referred to as Canada's "natural governing party".[22][14]
For other liberal political parties in Canada, see Liberalism in Canada § Current parties.
Liberal Party of Canada Parti libéral du Canada
- LPC (English)
- PLC (French)
Sachit Mehra
July 1, 1867
Parti rouge (Canada East)
Clear Grits (Canada West)
- Constitution Square
- 350 Albert Street
- Suite 920
- Ottawa, Ontario
- K1P 6M8
300,000[1]
Red
The party first came into power in 1873 under Alexander Mackenzie, but were voted out five years later due to the economic conditions at the time. They would not come back to office until 1896; Wilfrid Laurier was prime minister from that year until the party's defeat in 1911 and his tenure was marked by several compromises between English and French Canada. From the early 1920s until the mid-1950s,[c] the Liberal Party under Prime Ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King and Louis St. Laurent gradually built a Canadian welfare state.
The Liberals' signature policies and legislative decisions include universal health care, the Canada Pension Plan, Canada Student Loans, the establishment of the Royal Canadian Navy, multilateralism, official bilingualism, official multiculturalism, gun control, the patriation of the Constitution of Canada and the establishment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Clarity Act, legalizing same-sex marriage, euthanasia, and cannabis, national carbon pricing, and expanded access to abortion.[7][23][24][25]
The Liberal Party, led by Justin Trudeau since 2013, won a majority government in the 2015 federal election. In both the federal elections of 2019 and 2021, the party was re-elected with a minority government.
Provincial parties[edit]
Eight provinces and one territory in Canada have a Liberal Party in their legislatures. Neither Nunavut nor the Northwest Territories have party-based electoral and governing systems (both operate with consensus democracy). British Columbia had a Liberal Party whose name and ideology have shifted, BC United; Saskatchewan also had a Liberal Party whose name has changed, Saskatchewan Progress Party. Yukon, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec each have a Liberal Party that may align ideologically with the federal party but operates as a completely separate entity (though at one time were affiliated): Those provincial parties have separate policies, finances, memberships, constituency associations, executives, conventions and offices. The New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island provincial Liberals are each politically and organizationally affiliated with the federal Liberal Party.
