This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Canada, which closed in 2021.
PoliticsJustin TrudeauAndrew Scheercanada election 2019

Everything You Need To Know About The 2019 Federal Leaders' Debates

Watch the debates here.
HuffPost Canada Staff
|

On Monday, Oct. 7, six federal party leaders faced off in an English-language debate in front of a non-partisan live audience at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., overlooking Parliament Hill..

On Thursday, Oct. 10, the same leaders will participate in a French-language debate 8-10 p.m. ET in the same location.

How to watch the French debate on Oct. 10, 8-10 p.m. ET

Themes for the French debate:

  • Economy and finances
  • Environment and energy
  • Foreign policy and immigration
  • Identity, ethics and governance
  • Services to citizens
Six party leaders will participate in the official debates in October.
CDPP
Six party leaders will participate in the official debates in October.

The leaders were asked questions submitted by Canadians as well as from the journalists moderating the debates.

The debates are produced and distributed by the nine media outlets that make up the Canadian Debate Production Partnership, with additional distribution from other partners.

We acknowledge the support of interpreters in sign languages, official languages and Indigenous languages, for services provided through the Translation Bureau and Public Services and Procurement Canada.

Replay the English debate from Oct. 7, 2019:

The English debate replay is also available in:

Themes for the English debate:

  • Affordability and economic insecurity
  • National and global leadership
  • Indigenous issues
  • Polarization, human rights and immigration
  • Environment and energy

Party leaders:

The leaders’ parties had to meet two out of three requirements set by the federal Leaders’ Debates Commission. All participation order in the debates have been decided by draw to ensure fairness.

Moderators

The moderators come from each of the media organizations in the Canadian Debate Production Partnership, and have deep experience in news or politics coverage.

From left to right: Susan Delacourt, Dawna Friesen, Althia Raj, Lisa LaFlamme and Rosemary Barton.
CDPP
From left to right: Susan Delacourt, Dawna Friesen, Althia Raj, Lisa LaFlamme and Rosemary Barton.

In the English debate, distinct sections of the two-hour event were each guided by the moderators:

The French debate will be moderated by Patrice Roy from Radio-Canada with the participation of:

From left to right: Alec Castonguay, Patricia Cloutier, Patrice Roy, Hélène Buzzetti, François Cardinal.
CDPP
From left to right: Alec Castonguay, Patricia Cloutier, Patrice Roy, Hélène Buzzetti, François Cardinal.

How the debate producer was chosen

In 2018, the government announced plans to set up an independent commission to standardize a transparent process of organizing the leaders’ debates.

The mandate of the resulting Leaders’ Debate Commission, led by former governor general David Johnston, is to make the debates a more reliable and stable element of federal election campaigns, and to ensure the debates are as accessible as possible on a variety of platforms.

In May, the commission issued a request for proposal, seeking bidders to produce the English and French debates. Nine media outlets came together to form the Canadian Debate Production Partnership and won the contract to produce the two events.

The Canadian Debate Production Partnership is comprised of:

These are the additional distribution partners:

Justin TrudeauAndrew Scheercanada election 2019Federal Electiondebate
Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Canada. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.