Theprime minister of Canada is the official who serves as the primaryminister of the Crown, chair of theCabinet, and thushead of government ofCanada. Twenty-four people (twenty-three men and one woman) have served as prime minister. Officially, the prime minister is appointed by thegovernor general of Canada, but byconstitutional convention, the prime minister must have theconfidence of the electedHouse of Commons. Normally, this is the leader of the party caucus with the greatest number of seats in the house. However, in a minority parliament the leader of an opposition party may be asked to form a government if the incumbent government resigns and the governor general is persuaded that they have the confidence of the House.
By constitutional convention, a prime minister holds a seat in parliament and, since the early 20th century, this has more specifically meant the House of Commons.[1]
The 24th and current prime minister isMark Carney, who assumed office on 14 March 2025. There are currently six living former prime ministers. The most recent former prime minister to die wasBrian Mulroney, on 29 February 2024.
The office is not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of theConstitution of Canada;executive authority is formally vested inthe sovereign and exercised on the sovereign's behalf by the governor general. The prime ministership is part of Canada's constitutional convention tradition. The office was modelled after that which existed in theUnited Kingdom at the time of Confederation.John A. Macdonald was commissioned by theViscount Monck on 24 May 1867 to form the firstgovernment of theCanadian Confederation. On 1 July 1867, thefirst ministry assumed office.[2]
When the prime minister begins their term is determined by the date that they are sworn in as prime minister or, if they do not take an oath as prime minister, the date they were sworn into anotherportfolio, as anoath of office as prime minister is not required.[3] However, since 1957, all incoming prime ministers have sworn an oath as prime minister.[3] Before 1920, prime ministers' resignations were accepted immediately by the governor general and the last day of the ministries were the date he died or the date of resignation.[3] Since 1920, the outgoing prime minister has only formally resigned when the new government is ready to be formed.[3] TheInterpretation Act of 1967 states that "where an appointment is made effective or terminates on a specified day, that appointment is considered to be effective or to terminate after the end of the previous day".[3] Thus, although the outgoing prime minister formally resigns only hours before the incoming ministry swears their oaths, both during the day, the ministries are effectively changed at midnight the night before. Some sources, including theParliament of Canada, apply this convention as far back as 1917.[4] Two prime ministers have died in office: John A. Macdonald (1867–1873, 1878–1891) andJohn Thompson (1892–1894), both of natural causes. All others have resigned, either after losing an election or upon retirement.
Canadian custom is to count by the individuals who were prime minister, not by terms.[5] Since Confederation, 24 prime ministers have been called upon by the governor general to form30 Canadian ministries.[5]
First prime minister born in what would become Canada; first of only two prime ministers to serve while in the Senate; Minister without Portfolio; succeeded on Macdonald's death due to objections to the CatholicJohn Thompson; in ill health; retired.
Minister of Customs,Minister of Railways and Canals; Oldest Canadian PM to take office. Longest life of any Canadian prime minister (as of 2025), at 94 years, four months. Appointed prime minister while Parliament was dissolved for the 1896 election; despite his party's defeat, attempted to remain in office, until dismissed by the Governor General. Never sat in parliament as prime minister; he was MP forCape Breton, NS immediately before and after the election.
LSParty won the election, but prime minister lost own seat
IATheInterpretation Act of 1967 states that "where an appointment is made effective or terminates on a specified day, that appointment is considered to be effective or to terminate after the end of the previous day." Under the Act, prime ministers' tenures are therefore credited as having concluded at the end of their last full day in office, although their resignation was received by the governor general on the following day. This provision applies to P. Trudeau in 1979[49] and 1984,[50] Clark,[51] Turner,[52] Mulroney,[53] Campbell,[54] Chrétien,[55] Martin,[55] Harper,[55] and J. Trudeau.
Donaldson, G. (1994).The Prime Ministers of Canada. Doubleday Canada.ISBN978-0-385-25454-0.
English, J.R.; Dutil, P. (2023).Statesmen, Strategists and Diplomats: Canada's Prime Ministers and the Making of Foreign Policy. The C. D. Howe Series in Canadian Political History Series. University of British Columbia Press.ISBN978-0-7748-6855-6.
Schlee, Gary (2018).Unknown and unforgettable : a guide to Canada's Prime Ministers. Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ISBN978-1-7753780-0-6.OCLC1108336247.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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