Elections Canada workers assemble materials for the 2025 federal election.

Image Credit: Elections Canada

There are still some candidate slots left to be filled in federal ridings in the Thompson and the Okanagan regions, but how those names end up on the ballot is a question most people don’t consider.

The writ for the federal election dropped on Sunday and some notable figures stepped into the running like former Kelowna Liberal MP Stephen Fuhr. While incumbent candidates are putting their signs up, there are still a lot of spaces to fill in the region for the other parties. 

Fuhr said the scramble to fill candidacies is not surprising when you remember that political parties are run by regular people who aren’t getting paid.

“To some extent this is a reminder that this is a human endeavour,” he said. “We like to think of these political parties as well-honed machines that have never missed a trick but they really do vary. These riding associations are organized on the ground and they require, quite often, the work of unpaid volunteers.”

Eligible voters who want to decide who represents their party of choice can register to a federal party and participate in its candidate nomination process, but few folks actually do.

“The vast majority of voters don't take that step of actually joining a party and contributing to it financially and with their time. So it does seem to be perhaps something of an indictment of the parties themselves,” UBC political science lecturer Stewart Prest told iNFOnews.ca.

Individual riding associations organize nomination meetings where registered party members can vote for nominees to represent the party. Voting in a nomination meeting is like voting in any election, registered members need ID and proof that they live in the riding. Canadians aren't allowed to vote for more than one party's nominee, so you can't go vote for a strong nominee in one party then go vote for a weak nominee in a party you don't like. 

To register with the Liberal Party of Canada you only need to fill out a form online, and to register as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada you also need to pay $15.

“The parties are always trying to balance a number of different considerations in how they structure their membership rules where Liberals used to have that required fee as well,” Prest said. “It can signal a kind of commitment to the cause if you're willing to put your money where your mouth and your name is.”

READ MORE: Liberals on Thompson-Okanagan ballots begin to surface

The Liberal Party announced that it hit 400,000 registered members in January, but the Conservatives had already blown past that number in 2022 with 675,000 members.

Almost anybody can run as an Independent but to represent a party has numerous requirements for the Liberals and Conservatives.

The polls indicated the Liberals were set up for a defeat to the Conservatives until Liberal leader Mark Carney replaced Justin Trudeau, followed by US president Donald Trump threatening Canada’s sovereignty.

Prest said now that the polls are showing more promise for the Liberals, the party is going to have an easier time convincing people like Fuhr to stick their necks out in historically Conservative ridings around Kamloops and the Okanagan.

“It seems like we were looking at a severe drubbing and that's always hard to recruit people to step up for what would be their own political funeral,” he said. “With Carney and with a new wind in the Liberal sails, that changes the dynamic considerably.”

Pollster 338 Canada shows the Liberals winning the election with 178 seats to the Conservatives’ 130 as of March 24.

Finding a candidate that is going to vote independently as opposed to towing the party line is a challenge these days, according to Prest. Even though it’s tough to find a politician who is willing to break the mold, Prest said people should still care who their individual Member of Parliament is.

“The discipline that we see in contemporary Canadian politics means that the vast majority of time the vast majority of MPs are going to vote along party lines. Somebody might be forgiven for not paying attention,” he said. “You want to have somebody with the character to do the right thing even if it's hard.”

Following politics might be an exhausting endeavour in 2025, but Prest said these are the moments when politics matter.

“Taking the time to find out what the issues are and how they matter to you and how they affect you, and during the election period that's going to be worth everyone's time,” he said.

Find your Liberal riding association here.

Find your Conservative riding association here.

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