Accounting for the electoral success of the liberal party in Canada - Presidential address to the Canadian Political Science Association - London, Ontario - June 3, 2005

I show that the strong electoral success of the Liberal party in Canada stems in great part from the strong support of Catholics and Canadians of non-European origin. In the absence of the fervent backing it enjoys among these two groups, the Liberals would not be among the most successful democratic parties in the world. Yet, we do not have a good understanding of why Catholics and non-Europeans vote Liberal. I argue that the group bases of Liberal support should lead us to question the common interpretation that the party's centrist policy position is the key to its electoral success. © 2005 Canadian Political Science Association.