The race is on to elect the next prime minister. Here’s what you need to know

An image of a hand dropping election card into ballot box with text that says, The race to the Oct. 21 federal election has officially been called. But what does this mean?
An image featuring Justin Trudeau, Andrew Scheer, Jagmeet Singh, Elizabeth May, Maxime Bernier and Yves-François Blanchet with text that says, Who’s running? There are six main party leaders running in the federal election.
An image of Just Trudeau with text that says, Liberal Party of Canada - Party leader Justin Trudeau. Trudeau became prime minister when the Liberals won the last election in 2015. Campaign slogan: “Choose Forward.”
An image of Andrew Scheer with text that says, Conservative Party of Canada - Party leader Andrew Scheer. Scheer was elected Conservative leader in May 2017. Campaign slogan: “It’s time for you to get ahead”.
An image of Jagmeet Singh with text that says, New Democratic Party - Party leader Jagmeet Singh. Singh became leader of the NDP in October 2017. Campaign slogan: “In it for you.”
An image of Elizabeth May with text that says, Party leader Elizabeth May - Green Party of Canada. May became the first Green MP elected to the House of Commons on May 2, 2011. Campaign slogan: “Not Left. Not Right. Forward Together.”
An image of Yves-François Blanchet with text that says, Bloc Québécois - Party leader Yves-François Blanchet. Blanchet became leader of the Bloc in January 2019. Campaign slogan: Le Québéc, C’est Nous (Quebec is us)
An image of Maxime Bernier with text that says, People’s Party of Canada - Party Leader Maxime Bernier, The PPC is a new party formed by Bernier in Sept. 2018, shortly after he resigned from the Conservative Party. Campaign slogan: “Strong and free.”
An image of Andrew Scheer with text that says, What is a political party? An organized group of people who have shared beliefs about how the country should be run.
An image of Justin Trudeau with text that says, How long is the election? An election campaign starts the day it is called by the Governor General, based on advice from the prime minister. The duration of this campaign, called the “writ period,”ends on election day.
An image of Parliament Hill with text that says, How does a party win? The party that wins the most seats forms government and its leader becomes prime minister. The party that secures the second-largest number of seats becomes the Official Opposition.A government that secures half of the seats plus one is called a majority.
An image of seats in the House of Commons with text that says, How does a party win? The party that wins the most seats forms government and its leader becomes prime minister. The party that secures the second-largest number of seats becomes the Official Opposition.A government that secures half of the seats plus one is called a majority.
An image of seats in the House of Commons with text that says, TEXT: How many seats must you have to form a majority government? A party needs 170 seats to form a majority government. If a party wins less than 170 seats, a minority government is formed. Trudeau and the Liberal Party won 184 seats in the last election, allowing the current prime minister to form a majority government.
An image of a voter leaving a polling station with text that says, What happens if a minority government is voted in? Since a minority government holds less than half of the seats in the House, it needs external support from other parties in order to pass any laws.
An image of people lining up to vote outside a polling station with text that says, Who can vote? You must be 18 or older and a Canadian citizen to vote in the federal election. But that doesn’t mean kids can’t stay informed. Government decisions affect kids’ future no matter how old they are.