Author Archives: J.W.J. Bowden

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About J.W.J. Bowden

My area of academic expertise lies in Canadian political institutions, especially the Crown, political executive, and conventions of Responsible Government; since 2011, I have made a valuable contribution to the scholarship by having been published and cited extensively. I’m also a contributing editor to the Dorchester Review and a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Parliamentary and Political Law.

“The Natural Governing Party:” A Canadian Political Meme Misquoted or Morphed

Posted on 2025/12/16 by J.W.J. Bowden

Peter C. Newman seems to have originated a famous meme of Canadian politics by quoting Jack Pickersgill, a former Clerk of the Privy Council, Liberal cabinet minister, historian, and literary executor of William Lyon Mackenzie King’s estate. In 1968, Newman … Continue reading →

Posted in History of British North America | 2 Comments

Ontario Needs to Readjust Its Provincial Electoral Boundaries Regularly

Posted on 2025/11/30 by J.W.J. Bowden

Ontario recently repealed its fixed-date election law and abolished pre-writ spending limits. Instead of putting those amendments to the Election Act in an omnibus budget implementation bill, they should have formed part of an electoral bill that would also allow … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Boundaries Readjustments | Leave a comment

Premier Wab Kinew Wants to Make Manitoba the Second Officially Bilingual Province

Posted on 2025/10/06 by J.W.J. Bowden

  “A Truly Bilingual Province”  Radio-Canada reported on 3 October 2025 that Wab Kinew, the Premier of Manitoba, would to see his province become bilingual “like New Brunswick.” Radio-Canada Info uploaded this video to its website and YouTube channel which … Continue reading →

Posted in Amending Formulas, Constitution (Written), History of British North America | Leave a comment

Some Thoughts on Gerrymandering and Mid-Term Redistricting in the United States

Posted on 2025/09/30 by J.W.J. Bowden

Gerrymandering means that the party in power manipulates the boundaries of electoral districts to maximize the votes of its own supporters and dilute the votes of its opponents in an attempt to stay in office as long as possible. [1] … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Boundaries Readjustments | Leave a comment

Single-Member Electoral Districts Cannot Be Unconstitutional Because They Form Part of the Constitution of Canada

Posted on 2025/08/26 by J.W.J. Bowden

Introduction  The Ontario Court of Appeal issued a ruling in August 2025 which upheld the constitutionality of single-member electoral districts and lambasted so-called “Fair Vote British Columbia” (which for some reason litigated single-member plurality in Ontario) for having “repackage[ed] failed … Continue reading →

Posted in Amending Formulas, Constitution (Written), Electoral Boundaries Readjustments, Electoral Reform | Leave a comment