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.

Rejecting Constitutional Advice Equals Dismissal from Office: How Governor General Lord Aberdeen Forced Sir Charles Tupper’s Resignation in 1896

Posted on 2020/01/01 by J.W.J. Bowden

When I first embarked on this constitutional odyssey in 2011, I encountered scholars who propagated a novel constitutional interpretation with no basis in history, nor in the principles of Responsible Government itself, which I call “Reserve Powers Without Consequence”: the … Continue reading →

Posted in Caretaker Convention & Government Formation, Dorchester Review, Formation of Governments, My Published Works | 2 Comments

Extra-Constitutional Reform of the Senate of Canada

Posted on 2019/12/27 by J.W.J. Bowden

The latest issue of The Dorchester Review includes my piece on “The Founders’ Senate.” In this article, I outline how the Senate of Canada, and the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada, functioned as partisan legislative bodies from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Dorchester Review, History of British North America, My Published Works, Senate Reform | Leave a comment

On Dual Citizenship and Senators in Canada and Australia

Posted on 2019/11/10 by J.W.J. Bowden

The British North America Act, 1867 and the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act, 1901 set up the two first federal self-governing dominions within the British Empire, and they contain numerous similarities, sometimes even identical wording. For instance, section 91 of … Continue reading →

Posted in Commonwealth Realms, Comparative | 8 Comments

Elizabeth May & the Spectre of Proportional Representation, Part II

Posted on 2019/11/05 by J.W.J. Bowden

Elizabeth May’s Electoral System Would Require a Multilateral Constitutional Amendment The day after the election, May appeared on CBC’s Power & Politics and both bragged that the Greens had tripled their parliamentary party (in the most basic sense, from 1 … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Reform, Reform | Leave a comment

Elizabeth May & The Spectre of Proportional Representation, Part I

Posted on 2019/11/04 by J.W.J. Bowden

The results of the general federal election of October 2019 – particularly in Quebec –  have revivified the unthinking cacophonous bleating about proportional representation to which the Special Committee on Electoral Reform gave a platform in the last parliament. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Reform, Reform | Leave a comment