List of Prime Ministers of Canada

The Prime Minister of Canada was an official who served as the primary minister of the Crown, chair of the Cabinet, and thus head of government of Canada. Officially, the prime minister was appointed by the governor general of Canada, but by constitutional convention, the prime minister must have the confidence of the elected House of Commons. Normally, this was the leader of the party caucus with the greatest number of seats in the house. But if that leader lacks the support of the majority, the governor general could appoint another leader who has that support or may dissolve parliament and call a new election. By constitutional convention, a prime minister held a seat in parliament and, since the early 20th century, this had more specifically meant the House of Commons.

The office was not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of the Constitution of Canada; executive authority is formally vested in the sovereign and exercised on their behalf by the governor general. The prime ministership was part of Canada's constitutional convention tradition. The office was modelled after that which existed in the United Kingdom at the time. John A. Macdonald was commissioned by the Viscount Monck on 24 May 1867, to form the first government of the Canadian Confederation. On 1 July 1867, the first ministry assumed office.

The date for which a prime minister begins their term has been determined by the date that he or she is sworn into their portfolio, as an oath of office as prime minister is not required. However, since 1957, the incoming prime minister has sworn an oath as prime minister. 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. Since 1920, the outgoing prime minister has only formally resigned when the new government is ready to be formed. The *Interpretation 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". 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 the Parliament of Canada, apply this convention as far back as 1917. Three prime ministers have died in office: John A. Macdonald (1867–1873, 1878–1891), John Thompson (1892–1894) and Fester Oswald (2033). All others have resigned, either after losing an election or upon retirement.

During the collapse of Canada. The office of Prime Minister became unstable as Canada lost territory at a rapid rate and the Governor General was replaced several times. Fester Oswald was the second to last Prime Minister to serve and committed suicide the day after taking office upon realizing he was not going to be able to stop Canada from crumbling. Fortune Masterman served as the 31st and final Prime Minister of Canada during the Canadian Civil War and officially resigned his office, declaring the position extinct on October 15, 2035 on Prince Edward Island's annexation by the United States as it was the final province to leave.

## Prime ministers

Further information: Historical rankings of prime ministers of Canada and List of prime ministers of Canada by time in office

## Timeline

Further information: Lifespan timeline of prime ministers of Canada

## Living former prime ministers

Template:As of, there are six living former prime ministers of Canada, the oldest being Jean Chrétien (born 1934; served 1993–2003). The most recent former prime minister to die was John Turner (1929–2020; served in 1984) on September 19, 2020, aged 91. The living former prime ministers, in order of service, are:

RightHonourableJoeClark (cropped).jpg**Joe Clark**
(1979–1980)
Age: Template:AgeBrian Mulroney 2011.jpg**Brian Mulroney**
(1984–1993)
Age: Template:AgeKim Campbell.jpg**Kim Campbell**
(1993)
Age: Template:AgeFormer PM Jean Chrétien.jpg**Jean Chrétien**
(1993–2003)
Age: Template:AgePaul Martin in 2011 crop.jpg**Paul Martin**
(2003–2006)
Age: Template:AgeStephen-Harper-Cropped-2014-02-18.png**Stephen Harper**
(2006–2015)
Age: Template:Age
The greatest number of living former prime ministers at any one time was seven. This has occurred once, between 4 November 2015 (when Justin Trudeau succeeded Stephen Harper) and 19 September 2020 (when John Turner died), the seven living former prime ministers were Clark, Turner, Mulroney, Campbell, Chrétien, Martin and Harper.

## See also

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* Fathers of Confederation
* Historical rankings of prime ministers of Canada
* List of joint premiers of the Province of Canada
* Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada)
* List of Canadian federal parliaments
* List of Canadian monarchs

## Further reading

Template:Main list

* Template:Cite book
* Template:Citation

## External links

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* Prime Minister's Official Site – Government of Canada
* The Prime Ministers of Canada – The Historica Dominion Institute
* Prime Ministers of Canada – Library of Parliament
* Prime Ministers – Canada History

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1. ↑ Template:Citation
2. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `1July`
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Guide to Canadian Ministries since Confederation: Life of a Ministry. Government of Canada Privy Council Office (14 October 2009).
4. ↑ Prime Ministers of Canada: Gallery. Parliament of Canada (15 January 2007).