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.

Journalists Refuse to Report on Incumbent Premiers Accurately

Posted on 2024/11/02 by J.W.J. Bowden

Journalists need to earn the trust of their viewers and readers. They could start by reporting on the basic foundations of Responsible Government in Canada correctly. British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and New Brunswick have recently held general elections in accordance with … Continue reading →

Posted in Crown (Powers and Office), Formation of Governments | Leave a comment

More Fixed-Date Election Foibles: Delaying the Scheduled Federal General Election by One Week

Posted on 2024/11/01 by J.W.J. Bowden

The Current Fixed-Date Elections Law Before the House of Commons lies a bill to amend the fixed-date elections law in sections 56.1 and 56.2 of the Canada Elections Act. It continues in the long tradition of tinkering and ad hockery … Continue reading →

Posted in Fixed-Date Elections | 1 Comment

Ousting Party Leaders: From the King Doctrine to the Unenforceable Reform Act

Posted on 2024/10/25 by J.W.J. Bowden

Introduction Justin Trudeau stood defiant on 24 October 2024 and declared four days before the deadline that he would stay on as leader of the Liberal Party and Prime Minister in defiance of about one-fifth of Liberal MPs: “We’re going … Continue reading →

Posted in Electing & Ousting Party Leaders, Party Discipline | 2 Comments

Dissenting Liberal MPs Fail to Thatcher Trudeau

Posted on 2024/10/24 by J.W.J. Bowden

Even after suffering the worst defeat in electoral history in 2011, the Liberals had managed to cling onto their redoubt of Toronto—St. Paul’s and their core support of urban Torontonians who would surely never abandon them. A Conservative had not … Continue reading →

Posted in Electing & Ousting Party Leaders, Party Discipline | 2 Comments

“I Had No Option”: How John Turner Became Pierre Trudeau’s Patronage Patsy in 1984

Posted on 2024/09/25 by J.W.J. Bowden

Pulling the Thread That Unravels the Tapestry  Like many interesting stories, this begins with a mistake and a clerical error. My colleague David Brock and I wrote an article for the Saskatchewan Law Review called “Beyond the Writ: The Expansion … Continue reading →

Posted in Appointment of PM, Caretaker Convention & Government Formation, Constitutional Conventions, Crown (Powers and Office), Formation of Governments | Leave a comment