The Committee welcomes presentations on any aspect of Senate elections.

Background

The Senate of Canada is made up of 105 senators who are appointed to their positions by the Governor General, on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Canada. To qualify for a summons to the Senate, the nominee must: be a Canadian citizen; be at least 30 years of age; own $4,000 of equity in land in the home province or territory; have a personal net worth of at least $4,000; and live in the home province or territory.

The Senate is Canada’s upper house and examines the bills proposed by the House of Commons, which is made up 308 elected members of parliament. The traditional role of the Senate is one of “sober second thought” on the legislation proposed and passed by the House of Commons. No bill can become law without the approval of the Senate.

The role of the Senate and the method of selecting senators has long been a subject of national debate. In the past two years the federal government has introduced two different pieces of legislation indicating its will to proceed with Senate reform, including electing senators and setting term limits. In response, Manitoba has established an all party committee to ask Manitobans how their senators could be elected. This process reflects legislation Manitoba passed in 2006 to address Senate elections.

Context

When the committee assembles its report on this subject it will be considering and addressing a number of issues and concerns, including:

• What method should be used to elect Manitoba senators?
   

• Should senators be elected by proportional representation, or some other form of voting?
   

• How can we ensure that the election of senators will result in better representation of all regions of Manitoba?
   

• Should senators be elected by ridings or by all Manitobans?
   

• In addition to the existing federal requirements for Senate nomination, should a potential candidate for Senate have to meet any other requirements in order to run for office?
   

• Should there be a limited number of consecutive years that a Manitoba Senator can serve?
   

• How often should Manitoba Senate elections be held?
   

• Should the elections be held in conjunction with other elections?
   

• How should advertisements and other public events be handled during a Senate election?
   

• Should there be limits on expenditures and contributions for Senate elections?