House to swap Speaker in rare mid-session election
OTTAWA – The House of Commons will vote for a new Speaker tomorrow in a rare mid-session election.
Steven Chaplin, a fellow at the University of Ottawa’s Public Law Centre, says this is only the second time in Canadian history that a Speaker didn’t complete their full term.
Anthony Rota resigned from the position last week amid controversy after he invited parliamentarians, during a visit by Ukraine’s president, to applaud a veteran who served in a Nazi unit in the Second World War.
The longest-serving MP in the House, a Bloc Québécois representative, was put in as an interim Speaker — a move Chaplin says is a first in Canada’s history, but one that signals the House aims to rise above partisanship.
All members of Parliament, except for party leaders and ministers, can put themselves on the ballot for the Speaker role, and they have until today to take their names off the list before a vote on Tuesday.
A handful of Conservative, Liberal and NDP MPs, along with Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, have indicated they want the role, which comes with a pay raise and an official residence.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 2, 2023.
