The head of the Canadian government is the Prime Minister. Since 4 November 1993, this has been the Honourable Jean Chrétien.In the USA, an election occurs only for the President, and separate elections are held for other positions in government. However, in Canada, there is no separate election for Prime Minister in Canada. Rather, federal elections are held no less than every five years. The Prime Minister becomes the person who is the leader of the political party that wins the most number of seats in the House of Commons as a result of the federal election.
He or she forms the Government with his or her colleagues. The leader of the party that wins the second greatest number of seats forms the official Opposition with his or her colleagues. The other parties and their leaders make up the rest of the Opposition. Together, all elected Members of Parliament comprise a Parliamentary Democracy. It passes the laws that govern Canada.
The Prime Minister, like all Members of Parliament (MPs), represents a single constituency in a particular part of the country. The Single Member Plurality system is used in all Canadian federal and provincial elections. Under this system, one voter casts one vote for a single candidate. The candidate who wins the most votes is elected.