At the onset of the pandemic, in March 2020, there was an (unconfirmed) collective idea that in a few weeks or months we would be able to go back to our lives as usual, and the pandemic would be a thing of the past. Now we recognize that it wasn’t that simple, that the regular functions of the country must continue, and that we would, at least for now, have to learn to live with the virus. 

In September 2020, New Brunswick held Canada’s first election during the pandemic, and electoral management bodies had to grapple with the challenge of how to prepare for an election. 

Canada has now seen six provincial and territorial elections and a federal election. So what have we learned? And how can we use these lessons to better prepare ourselves for voting in times of emergencies?
 
Today’s guests are Allison Harell and Laura Stephenson, co-directors of C-DEM. This organization administers the Canadian Election Study, which collects and analyses public opinion data on electoral attitudes in Canada. They will be speaking about their research and the lessons we have learned from voting during a pandemic.

PO Podcast 132 - Lessons learned from pandemic elections

When a snap election was called in August, Canadians had a little over a month to prepare for a federal election and digest the platforms put forward by the political parties vying for their votes.

Each party focused on what they thought would get them the most seats in the House. The New Democrats talked about affordability writ large, the Conservatives prioritized financial well-being, the Bloc put Quebec’s interests first, the Greens focused on environmental sustainability and the Liberals promised a suite of measures to help stop COVID in its tracks.

Months of intense planning goes into every election campaign. So how are these platforms conceived and developed in the first place? Who decides what makes the final cut? And what happens when something goes wrong?

An insider's look at creating political platforms - In Their Words 08

Le gouvernement fédéral a dévoilé le 29 mars son plan très attendu de réduction des émissions de gaz à effet de serre (GES). Le plan détaille entre autres comment le Canada prévoit atteindre son objectif de générer 40 % moins de GES en 2030 par rapport à 2005.

Pour parler de ce projet complexe et certainement ambitieux, le directeur du Centre d’excellence sur la fédération canadienne de l’IRPP Charles Breton s’est entretenu avec celui qui aura la mission d’en assurer la mise en œuvre, le ministre de l’Environnement et du Changement climatique M. Steven Guilbeault.

PO Podcast 143 - Le plan pour un air pur et une économie forte

Policy Options is a digital magazine published by the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP) in Montreal, Quebec. It features daily articles on issues of public policy by contributors from academia, research institutions, the political world, the public service and the non-profit and private sectors. We’re committed to introducing our listeners to a diversity of viewpoints on the important public policy challenges of our time.  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/IRPP
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IRPP.org/

PO Podcast 132 - Lessons learned from pandemic elections

Policy Options Podcast

Related tracks