List of Canadian federal parliaments

The Parliament of Canada is the legislative body of the government of Canada. The Parliament is composed of the House of Commons (lower house), the Senate (upper house), and the sovereign, represented by the governor general. Most major legislation originates from the Commons, as it is the only body that is directly elected. A new parliament begins after an election of the House of Commons and can sit for up to five years. The number of seats in parliament has varied as new provinces joined the country and as population distribution between the provinces changed; there are currently 343 House MPs and 105 Senators (when there are no vacancies).

Canada uses a Westminster-style parliamentary government, in which the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons becomes Prime Minister, even if the leader is not an elected member of parliament. The leader of the party with the second-most seats in the House becomes the leader of the Official Opposition, and debate (formally called Oral Questions) between the parties is presided over by the speaker of the House. When the party with the most seats has less than half of the total number of seats, it forms a minority government, which can be voted out of power by the other parties. The Canadian Parliament is located at Parliament Hill in the capital city, Ottawa, Ontario.

Parliaments

Diagram Parliament
Election
Sessions
Duration
(from return of the writs to dissolution)
Government Opposition
Governing Party
 • Prime Minister—Ministry
Seat counts as of election Official Opposition Party
 • Leader of the Opposition
Third Parties with official party status
1st Canadian Parliament
Elected 1867
5 sessions
Sep 24, 1867

Jul 8, 1872
Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—1st Ministry
100 of 180 House seats none
  • Liberal Party
  • Anti-Confederation Party
2nd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1872
2 sessions
Sep 3, 1872

Jan 2, 1874
Conservative Party (1872–1873)
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—1st Ministry
99 of 200 House seats
Liberal Party
  • Alexander Mackenzie
none
Liberal Party (1873–1874)
  • Alexander Mackenzie—2nd Ministry
95 of 200 House seats (minority) Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald
3rd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1874
5 sessions
Feb 21, 1874

Aug 16, 1878
Liberal Party
  • Alexander Mackenzie—2nd Ministry
129 of 206 House seats Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald
none
4th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1878
4 sessions
Nov 21, 1878

May 18, 1882
Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—3rd Ministry
134 of 206 House seats Liberal Party
  • Alexander Mackenzie
  • Edward Blake
none
5th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1882
4 sessions
Aug 7, 1882

Jan 15, 1887
Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—3rd Ministry
133 of 211 House seats Liberal Party
  • Edward Blake
none
6th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1887
4 sessions
Apr 13, 1887

Feb 3, 1891
Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—3rd Ministry
122 of 215 House seats Liberal Party
  • Edward Blake
  • Wilfrid Laurier
none
7th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1891
6 sessions
Apr 7, 1891

Apr 24, 1896
Conservative Party
  • Sir John A. Macdonald—3rd Ministry
  • Sir John Abbott—4th Ministry
  • Sir John Thompson—5th Ministry
  • Sir Mackenzie Bowell—6th Ministry
117 of 215 House seats Liberal Party
  • Wilfrid Laurier
none
8th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1896
5 sessions
Jul 13, 1896

Oct 9, 1900
Liberal Party
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier—8th Ministry
117 of 213 House seats Conservative Party
  • Sir Charles Tupper
none
9th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1900
4 sessions
Dec 5, 1900

Sep 29, 1904
Liberal Party
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier—8th Ministry
128 of 213 House seats Conservative Party
  • Robert Borden
none
10th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1904
4 sessions
Dec 15, 1904

Sep 17, 1908
Liberal Party
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier—8th Ministry
137 of 214 House seats Conservative Party
  • Robert Borden
none
11th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1908
3 sessions
Dec 3, 1908

Jul 29, 1911
Liberal Party
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier—8th Ministry
133 of 221 House seats Conservative Party
  • Robert Borden
none
12th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1911
7 sessions
Oct 7, 1911

Oct 6, 1917
Conservative Party
  • Sir Robert Borden—9th Ministry
132 of 221 House seats Liberal Party
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier
none
13th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1917
5 sessions
Mar 16, 1918

Oct 4, 1921
Unionist coalition (1918–1920)
  • Sir Robert Borden—10th Ministry
153 of 235 House seats (coalition) Laurier Liberals
  • Sir Wilfrid Laurier
  • Daniel Duncan McKenzie
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King
none
National Liberal and Conservative Party (1920–1921)
  • Arthur Meighen—11th Ministry
14th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1921
4 sessions
Jan 15, 1922

Sep 5, 1925
Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—12th Ministry
118 of 235 House seats Conservative Party
  • Arthur Meighen
  • Progressive Party
15th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1925
1 session
Dec 7, 1925

Jul 2, 1926
Liberal Party (1925–1926)
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—12th Ministry
100 of 245 House seats (minority) Conservative Party (1925–1926)
  • Arthur Meighen
  • Progressive Party
Conservative Party (1926)
  • Arthur Meighen—13th Ministry
115 of 245 House seats (minority) Liberal Party (1926)
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King
16th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1926
4 sessions
Nov 2, 1926

May 30, 1930
Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—14th Ministry
116 of 245 House seats (minority) Conservative Party
  • Hugh Guthrie
  • Richard Bennett
none
17th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1930
6 sessions
Aug 18, 1930

Aug 14, 1935
Conservative Party
  • Richard Bennett—15th Ministry
134 of 245 House seats Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King
none
18th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1935
6 sessions
Nov 9, 1935

Jan 25, 1940
Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—16th Ministry
173 of 245 House seats Conservative Party
  • Richard Bennett
  • Robert Manion
19th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1940
6 sessions
Apr 17, 1940

Apr 16, 1945
Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—16th Ministry
179 of 245 House seats Conservative Party
  • Richard Hanson
  • Gordon Graydon
none
20th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1945
5 sessions
Aug 9, 1945

Apr 30, 1949
Liberal Party
  • William Lyon Mackenzie King—16th Ministry
  • Louis St. Laurent—17th Ministry
118 of 245 House seats (minority) Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Bracken
  • George Drew
21st Canadian Parliament
Elected 1949
7 sessions
Aug 29, 1949

Jun 13, 1953
Liberal Party
  • Louis St. Laurent—17th Ministry
191 of 262 House seats Progressive Conservative Party
  • George Drew
  • Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
22nd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1953
5 sessions
Oct 8, 1953

Apr 12, 1957
Liberal Party
  • Louis St. Laurent—17th Ministry
169 of 265 House seats Progressive Conservative Party
  • George Drew
  • William Earl Rowe
  • George Drew
  • John Diefenbaker
23rd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1957
1 session
Aug 8, 1957

Feb 1, 1958
Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Diefenbaker—18th Ministry
111 of 265 House seats (minority) Liberal Party
  • Louis St. Laurent
  • Lester B. Pearson
24th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1958
5 sessions
Apr 30, 1958

Apr 19, 1962
Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Diefenbaker—18th Ministry
208 of 265 House seats Liberal Party
  • Lester B. Pearson
none
25th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1962
1 session
Jul 18, 1962

Feb 6, 1963
Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Diefenbaker—18th Ministry
116 of 265 House seats (minority) Liberal Party
  • Lester B. Pearson
26th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1963
3 sessions
May 8, 1963

Sep 8, 1965
Liberal Party
  • Lester B. Pearson—19th Ministry
128 of 265 House seats (minority) Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Diefenbaker
27th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1965
2 sessions
Dec 9, 1965

Apr 23, 1968
Liberal Party
  • Lester B. Pearson—19th Ministry
  • Pierre Trudeau—20th Ministry
131 of 265 House seats (minority) Progressive Conservative Party
  • John Diefenbaker
  • Michael Starr
  • Robert Stanfield
  • New Democratic Party
28th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1968
4 sessions
Jul 25, 1968

Sep 1, 1972
Liberal Party
  • Pierre Trudeau—20th Ministry
154 of 264 House seats Progressive Conservative Party
  • Robert Stanfield
  • New Democratic Party
  • Ralliement créditiste
29th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1972
2 sessions
Nov 20, 1972

May 9, 1974
Liberal Party
  • Pierre Trudeau—20th Ministry
109 of 264 House seats (minority) Progressive Conservative Party
  • Robert Stanfield
30th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1974
4 sessions
Jul 31, 1974

Mar 26, 1979
Liberal Party
  • Pierre Trudeau—20th Ministry
141 of 264 House seats

76 of 102 Senate seats

Progressive Conservative Party
  • Robert Stanfield
  • Joe Clark
  • New Democratic Party
31st Canadian Parliament
Elected 1979
1 session
Jun 11, 1979

Dec 14, 1979
Progressive Conservative Party
  • Joe Clark—21st Ministry
136 of 282 House seats (minority)

18 of 104 Senate seats

Liberal Party
  • Pierre Trudeau
  • New Democratic Party
32nd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1980
2 sessions
Mar 10, 1980

Jul 9, 1984
Liberal Party
  • Pierre Trudeau—22nd Ministry
  • John Turner—23rd Ministry
147 of 282 House seats

71 of 104 Senate seats

Progressive Conservative Party
  • Joe Clark
  • Brian Mulroney
  • New Democratic Party
33rd Canadian Parliament
Elected 1984
2 sessions
Sep 24, 1984

Oct 1, 1988
Progressive Conservative Party
  • Brian Mulroney—24th Ministry
211 of 282 House seats

23 of 104 Senate seats

Liberal Party
  • John Turner
  • New Democratic Party
34th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1988
3 sessions
Dec 12, 1988

Sep 8, 1993
Progressive Conservative Party
  • Brian Mulroney—24th Ministry
  • Kim Campbell—25th Ministry
169 of 295 House seats

36 of 104 Senate seats

Liberal Party
  • John Turner
  • Herb Gray
  • Jean Chrétien
  • New Democratic Party
35th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1993
2 sessions
Nov 15, 1993

Apr 27, 1997
Liberal Party
  • Jean Chrétien—26th Ministry
177 of 295 House seats

41 of 104 Senate seats

Bloc Québécois
  • Lucien Bouchard
  • Gilles Duceppe
  • Michel Gauthier
  • Reform Party
36th Canadian Parliament
Elected 1997
2 sessions
Jun 23, 1997

Oct 22, 2000
Liberal Party
  • Jean Chrétien—26th Ministry
155 of 301 House seats

51 of 104 Senate seats

Reform Party (1997–2000)
  • Preston Manning
Canadian Alliance (2000)
  • Deborah Grey
  • Stockwell Day
37th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2000
3 sessions
Dec 18, 2000

May 23, 2004
Liberal Party
  • Jean Chrétien—26th Ministry
  • Paul Martin—27th Ministry
172 of 301 House seats

55 of 105 Senate seats

Canadian Alliance (2000–2004)
  • Stockwell Day
  • John Reynolds
  • Stephen Harper
  • Grant Hill
Conservative Party (2004)
  • Grant Hill
  • Stephen Harper
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
38th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2004
1 session
Aug 23, 2004

Nov 29, 2005
Liberal Party
  • Paul Martin—27th Ministry
135 of 308 House seats (minority)

64 of 105 Senate seats

Conservative Party
  • Stephen Harper
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
39th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2006
2 sessions
Feb 13, 2006

Sep 7, 2008
Conservative Party
  • Stephen Harper—28th Ministry
124 of 308 House seats (minority)

23 of 105 Senate seats

Liberal Party
  • Bill Graham
  • Stéphane Dion
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
40th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2008
3 sessions
Nov 4, 2008

Mar 26, 2011
Conservative Party
  • Stephen Harper—28th Ministry
143 of 308 House seats (minority)

21 of 105 Senate seats

Liberal Party
  • Stéphane Dion
  • Michael Ignatieff
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
41st Canadian Parliament
Elected 2011
2 sessions
May 23, 2011

Aug 2, 2015
Conservative Party
  • Stephen Harper—28th Ministry
166 of 308 House seats

52 of 105 Senate seats

New Democratic Party
  • Jack Layton
  • Nycole Turmel
  • Thomas Mulcair
  • Liberal Party
  • Senate Liberal Caucus
42nd Canadian Parliament
Elected 2015
1 session
Dec 3, 2015

Sep 11, 2019
Liberal Party
  • Justin Trudeau—29th Ministry
184 of 338 House seats

0 of 105 Senate seats

Conservative Party
  • Rona Ambrose
  • Andrew Scheer
  • New Democratic Party
  • Independent Senators Group
  • Senate Liberal Caucus
43rd Canadian Parliament
Elected 2019
2 sessions
Dec 5, 2019

Aug 15, 2021
Liberal Party
  • Justin Trudeau—29th Ministry
157 of 338 House seats (minority)

0 of 105 Senate seats

Conservative Party
  • Andrew Scheer
  • Erin O'Toole
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
  • Independent Senators Group
  • Canadian Senators Group
  • Progressive Senate Group
44th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2021
1 session
Nov 22, 2021

Mar 23, 2025
Liberal Party
  • Justin Trudeau—29th Ministry
  • Mark Carney—30th Ministry
160 of 338 House seats (minority)

0 of 105 Senate seats

Conservative Party
  • Erin O'Toole
  • Candice Bergen
  • Pierre Poilievre
  • Bloc Québécois
  • New Democratic Party
  • Independent Senators Group
  • Canadian Senators Group
  • Progressive Senate Group
45th Canadian Parliament
Elected 2025
1 session
May 26, 2025

present
Liberal Party
  • Mark Carney—30th Ministry
169 of 343 House seats (minority)

0 of 105 Senate seats

Conservative Party
  • Andrew Scheer
  • Pierre Poilievre
  • Bloc Québécois
  • Independent Senators Group
  • Progressive Senate Group

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