In Canada, there is not really a set time between elections, although it usually ends up being around every four years (hence, you’ll typically hear liberal Canadians say “only 3 years left to go!” when talking about our current prime minister). Technically it is fixed at 4 years, but the PM can call an election whenever he chooses – usually this will be somewhere around that 4 year mark, and usually after something very good for his reputation (so his chances of being re-elected are good) or something very bad (causing parliament to have had a vote of “no confidence”, and urging the PM to call for an election).
I don’t feel that we have the same “candidates start running for the next election as soon as they are elected” mentality that I often see described in the US, although there’s certainly room for that. I wonder if it is only because the US parties are so polarized that it happens there. Between elections, we watch new candidates being groomed, and we talk about the coming elections, but there doesn’t seem to be the same kind of pressure here. Maybe we’re just more content to let the government do its job between elections? I really don’t know. Right now, we have a very conservative (though Americans would laugh at that) PM, and a lot of people are unhappy with the direction he is taking the country in. So we talk about the leadership of the liberal-leaning parties, and how the next election will go… a lot of my friends are activists and they do what they can to raise awareness about issues… but I don’t see the candidates giving stump speeches yet, and because Harper has a majority government, he doesn’t need to please anyone but himself, so he’s not “running”. I suppose he could go for a third term, but I have a feeling that he won’t.
I’m curious to know whether other Canadians have the same view of this (i.e., about “running” between elections, not specific Canadian politics) as I do. Others may not see it the same way at all.