Canada Welcome to the Campaign

On your mark, get set, go!
Moments ago Prime Minister Stephen Harper asked Governor General David Johnston to dissolve Parliament, confirming what everyone in Ottawa has over-speculated on for months: Canada’s 42nd Federal Election has officially begun.

With the date set for October 19th , this 78-day campaign will be the longest in modern Canadian history. It is also the first time Thomas Mulcair and Justin Trudeau are running as leaders of their respective parties. Rounding out the firsts, most polls show each party has a real shot at winning with some very exciting regional battles, so #elxn42 is shaping up to be a legitimate three-way race<http://abacusdata.ca/canadian-politics-5-points-separate-3-contenders-new-poll-finds/>.

A few points to get you started:
·         New Candidates: There are 30 new ridings in this election, bringing the total number of ridings across the country to 338. At the time of this note, the Liberals have nominated the most candidates (303/338), followed by the Conservatives (294/338) and the NDP (263/338). It is still possible to nominate candidates during an election period, so expect to see many nomination meetings happening in the next few weeks. Also close to 100 current MPs are not running again so regardless of who wins, there will be a lot of new faces on Parliament Hill.
·         First Debate: The first televised Leaders’ Debate will take place this Thursday from 8:00pm – 10:00pm EDT. Maclean’s magazine political editor Paul Wells will serve as moderator in the debate airing on Rogers television and radio properties. Thus far, this will be the only debate to feature four of the five Party leaders: Stephen Harper (Conservative), Thomas Mulcair (NDP), Justin Trudeau (Liberal), and Elizabeth May (Green). Tune in online here.<http://www.macleans.ca/national-leaders-debate/>
·         Spending Limits: Now that the campaign period has officially begun, there is a limit on what political parties can spend. However, the lengthened writ period also means the spending cap is higher than that of an average 37 day campaign. How much higher? In a 37 day campaign (much like what we had in 2011), spending would be capped at $25 million. That limit is now over $52M for a 78-day campaign. Spending limits are also in effect for third-party advertisers during a writ period; no more than (approx.) $400,000 can be spent over the course of the campaign.