Military Voters Act, 1917
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The Military Voters Act, 1917 was a Canadian wartime law that extended the federal franchise to members of the armed forces (including many who would not otherwise have been eligible to vote) in order to bolster political support for the government’s conscription and war policies during World War I.
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Canadian federal statute
ⓘ
wartime legislation ⓘ |
| appliesDuring | First World War NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
Canadian military personnel
ⓘ
Canadian nurses in military service ⓘ Canadian sailors ⓘ Canadian soldiers serving overseas ⓘ members of the Canadian Expeditionary Force ⓘ |
| associatedPrimeMinister | Robert Laird Borden NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| chamberInvolved |
House of Commons of Canada
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Senate of Canada NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| country | Canada ⓘ |
| criticizedFor |
manipulating the electorate for partisan advantage
ⓘ
undermining the neutrality of the franchise ⓘ |
| effect |
favoured pro-conscription candidates in the 1917 election
ⓘ
increased the number of eligible federal voters ⓘ |
| enactedIn | 1917 ⓘ |
| feature |
allowed voting by military personnel regardless of their place of residence in Canada
ⓘ
extended voting rights beyond normal property and residency requirements ⓘ granted the federal vote to many individuals who would not otherwise have been eligible to vote ⓘ introduced a system of military ballots ⓘ permitted votes to be allocated by party rather than by specific constituency in some cases ⓘ provided for special voting arrangements for soldiers serving overseas ⓘ |
| geographicScope | federal elections in Canada ⓘ |
| historicalSignificance |
contributed to the outcome of the 1917 Canadian federal election
ⓘ
marked a major expansion of the Canadian federal franchise during wartime ⓘ |
| implementedBy | Dominion government of Canada NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| jurisdiction | Dominion of Canada NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| languageOfDocument |
English
ⓘ
French ⓘ |
| legalArea |
constitutional law of Canada
ⓘ
election law ⓘ |
| legislativeBody | Parliament of Canada NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| politicalContext | introduced by the Unionist government of Robert Borden ⓘ |
| politicalGoal | to strengthen the electoral position of the pro-conscription government ⓘ |
| purpose |
to extend the federal franchise to members of the armed forces
ⓘ
to increase electoral support for the government’s conscription policy ⓘ to increase electoral support for the government’s war policies ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Military Service Act, 1917
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Wartime Elections Act, 1917 NERFINISHED ⓘ conscription crisis of 1917 ⓘ |
| status | historical ⓘ |
| subjectMatter |
federal electoral franchise
ⓘ
voting rights of military personnel ⓘ |
| targetGroup | supporters of the Unionist government ⓘ |
| temporalContext | World War I NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.