Canadian federal elections 2015: Get to know the parties

Twenty-two parties have been registered to compete for the 308 seats in the House of Commons of Canada as the country gears up for its 42nd federal elections on Oct. 19, 2015.

The 13 provinces that will be going into polls are Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been at the helm of the Conservative government of Canada since 2006. He served his first two terms in the minority government but assumed a majority status in the 2011 elections.

His party managed to secure 39.4 percent of votes and 166 of the 308 seats in the House of Commons in 2011. The New Democratic party finished second with 30.4 percent votes while the Liberal Party of Canada slid down to the third position with 18.8 percent of votes.

A total of 1,792 candidates have been fielded by 23 registered political parties across 13 provinces. Ninety-six registered third parties will also be taking part in the 42nd Canadian federal elections. The registered political parties that would be taking part in the Canadian Federal election 2015 and their leaders are listed as follows:

1. Alliance of the North

Number of candidate: 1.

Leader: François Bélanger

2. Animal Alliance Environment Voters Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 8

Leader: Liz White

3. Bloc Québécois

Number of Candidates: 78.

Leader: Gilles Duceppe

4. Canada Party

Number of Candidates: 337

Leader: James K. Pankiw

5. Canadian Action Party

Number of Candidates: 3

Leader: Jeremy E. Arney

6. Christian Heritage Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 30

Leader: Rodney L. Taylor

7. Communist Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 26

Leader: Miguel Figueroa

8. Conservative Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 338

Leader: Stephen Harper

9. Democratic Advancement Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 4

Leader: Stephen J. Garvey

10. Forces et Démocratie

Number of Candidates: 17

Leader: Jean-François Fortin

11. Green Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 336

Leader: Elizabeth May

12. Liberal Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 338

Leader: Justin Trudeau

13. Libertarian Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 72

Leader: Timothy P. Moen

14. Marijuana Party

Number of Candidates: 8

Leader: Blair T. Longley

15. Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 70

Leader: Anna Di Carlo

16. New Democratic Party

Number of Candidates: 338

Leader: Thomas Mulcair

17. Party for Accountability, Competency and Transparency

Number of Candidates: 1

Leader: Michael Nicula

18. Pirate Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 5

Leader: Roderick Lim

19. Progressive Canadian Party

Number of Candidates: 8

Leader: Sinclair M. Stevens

20. Rhinoceros Party

Number of Candidates: 27

Leader: Sébastien Corriveau

21. Seniors Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 1

Leader: Daniel J. Patton

22. The Bridge Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 1

Leader: David Berlin

23. United Party of Canada

Number of Candidates: 1

Leader: Robert (Bob) Kesic

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