Abstract

On May 2, 2011, the Conservative Party of Canada won its first majority government in decades. Throughout the last decade, the Conservatives have actively targeted 'ethnic voters' in order to achieve electoral victories over the Liberals and become the political voice of 'ethnic voters'. This research study deconstructs the practice of targeting 'ethnic voters' during Canadian federal election campaigns and analyzes the party identification of 'ethnic voters'. The research was executed using a combination of one-on-one key informant interviews and a selective constituency analysis. Some of the questions directing the research study include but are not limited to: Who are 'ethnic voters'? Through what means do Canadian federal political parties court 'ethnic voters'? Does the increased attention paid to 'ethnic voters' translate into substantive representation in the Canadian House of Commons? The findings suggest that the party identification of 'ethnic voter' constituencies has transformed over the last decade in large part due to the courting strategy employed by the Conservative Party.

Highlights

  • Immigrant political integration in Canada has received a considerable amount of attention in both Canadian political science and migration studies over the past few decades

  • Between 2001 and 2006, the city of Toronto took in 40.4% of all newcomers to Canada; 81.9% of those newcomers belonged to a visible minority group (Statistics Canada, 20 lOb)

  • That is precisely the dynamic that plays out when the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) utilizes the constructed category of, 'ethnic voters', furthering the unfavorable notion that these individuals are different from other Canadians and less than 'full citizens'

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Summary

Introduction

Immigrant political integration in Canada has received a considerable amount of attention in both Canadian political science and migration studies over the past few decades. The concept has become increasingly salient in Canadian political and migration studies due to the ever-increasing number of immigrant and visible minority Canadians. According to Statistics Canada, in 2006, 19.8 % of Canadians were immigrants while 16.2% of Canadians belonged to a visible minority group (Statistics Canada, 2006, 2010a). Between 2001 and 2006, the city of Toronto took in 40.4% of all newcomers to Canada; 81.9% of those newcomers belonged to a visible minority group (Statistics Canada, 20 lOb). Not all immigrants are members of visible minority groups, the majority of recent immigrants after 1976 are. Over the last three to four decades, Canadian society has been transf?rmed demographically due to its immigration policy and role in facilitating immigration

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