Parliament of the Province of Canada

The right to vote in elections to the Legislative Assembly was restricted to male British subjects (by birth, naturalisation or by conquest and cession), aged 21 and older.[13] They were also required to meet a property qualification. In rural areas, only the owners of land of a net yearly value of forty shillings or higher were entitled to vote. In towns and townships, the right to vote was restricted to those who owned a dwelling house and land of a yearly value of at least five pounds sterling, or to those who rented their dwelling house at an annual rate of ten pounds sterling and had lived in the town or township for at least one year before the election.[14] Individuals who had been convicted of treason or a felony were excluded from voting.[15]

Only male British subjects (by birth, naturalisation or by conquest and cession), aged 21 and older, were eligible for election to the Legislative Assembly.[13] Members of the clergy, whether Protestant or Roman Catholic, were barred from election to the Legislative Assembly,[16] as were individuals who had been convicted of treason or a felony.[15] Members of the Legislative Council could not be members of the Legislative Assembly.[16]

Members of the Legislative Assembly had to meet a property qualification, which was considerably higher than the property qualification for voting. They were required to own real estate of a net value of five hundred pounds sterling, over and above all rents, charges, mortgages and encumbrances.[17]

Before taking their seats, members of the Legislative Assembly had to swear an oath of allegiance to the British monarch.[18]

Members of the Legislative Council were required to be 21 years old or over, and a British subject, by birth or naturalisation.[10] The Governor General appointed the members of the Legislative Council, who held office for life,[19] unless a member resigned[20] or the seat was declared vacant by reason of absence or adherence to any foreign power.[21]

Before taking their seats, members of the Legislative Council had to swear an oath of allegiance to the British monarch.[18]

Elections for the Legislative Assembly were initiated by issuance of writs for election, one to each electoral district. The elections were conducted in each electoral district by a local returning officer. If more than one candidate was nominated, the returning officer would conduct a poll at a central location in the electoral district. Voters would come to the polling location, and would publicly vote for the candidate of their choice, which would be recorded by the poll clerk in a poll book against the voters' names. The returning officer would declare the candidate with the most votes to be elected. The returning officer for each electoral district would send a return of the writ to the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery.

The Parliament was to be summoned by the Governor General at least once per year. Elections of the Legislative Assembly were to occur every four years, subject to earlier dissolution by the Governor General. The Governor General also retained the power to prorogue the Parliament.[22]

Although Lord Durham had recommended that the British government institute responsible government, with the members of the Executive Council responsible to the Parliament, the British government rejected this proposal. Control of the executive initially remained with the Governor General. There was an Executive Council, appointed by the Governor General, but the Governor General was not required to act on their advice. He retained the ability to exercise executive powers on his own initiative alone.[23]

The Governor General had the power to grant assent to bills passed by the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council, to refuse assent, or to reserve a bill for consideration by the monarch.[24] If a bill was reserved, it was forwarded to London, where the government would decide if the bill should be allowed to come into force. The British Cabinet would advise the monarch whether to grant or withhold royal assent. If the monarch granted assent, the bill came into force. If royal assent was denied, the bill never became law.

Even if the Governor General granted assent, the British government retained the power to disallow a law. All acts had to be sent to the Colonial Office after the Governor General granted assent. The British government could advise the monarch to disallow an Act, at any time up to two years after receipt of the Act. If an Act was disallowed, it ceased to have effect from the date the Governor General advised the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council of the disallowance.[25]

Candidates at this time would be loosely affiliated in early political parties, but party structure was not strong, and there were different party groups in Canada East and Canada West. In the early years of the new Province, the major political debate was over local control of the government. Groups such as the Chateau Clique in Canada East and the Family Compact in Canada West favoured the power of the Governor General, appointed by the British government and taking instructions from Britain. Their opponents, known by various names such as Reformers, Parti patriote, and Groupe canadien-françaus, argued for local control of the government, under the system of responsible government used in Britain itself.