Broadbent Institute | Institut Broadbent

The disenfranchisement of unhoused individuals in the Waterloo Region stems from a complex interplay of policy gaps, inconsistent implementation, and systemic inequities.

While the Canada Elections Act formally guarantees voting rights to all citizens, regardless of housing status, structural and logistical obstacles marginalize this population.

Unhoused voters face further exclusion because of inconsistent election rules, inadequate outreach, and a lack of accommodations tailored to their circumstances.

🏠 perspectivesjournal.ca/ballots-without-barriers/

Ballots Without Barriers: Empowering Unhoused Voters during the 2025 Ontario Election | Perspectives Journal Despite legislative guarantees under the Canada Elections Act, practical barriers continue to hold one of the country’s most marginalized populations back from political participation.

Infrastructure building and industrial policy involves long periods of investment with no immediate payoff.

The political gamble is whether the narrative of nation-building under the context of existential sovereign threats can outlast necessary interregional contestation, not to mention inevitable unforeseeable global shocks that have yet to come.

While ambition and necessity of fast-tracking nation-building projects in the short and medium term should be embraced, it should not come at the cost of circumventing democratic processes.

🏗️ perspectivesjournal.ca/democratic-politics-industrial-policy/

The Democratic Politics of Industrial Policy and Defining Canadian Abundance | Perspectives Journal The return of industrial policy has come with a resurgence in critical attention to the meaning of state capacity, not just as a barometer of state success but even as a barometer of state legitimacy.

Elements of a redistributive and working-class agenda are already in demand, but many voters and especially the working class, feel politically alienated and disaffected that their interests are not being pursued.

🔗 perspectivesjournal.ca/changing-class-socdem-future/

The Changing Class Basis of Canadian and Social Democratic Futures | Perspectives Journal Elements of a redistributive and working-class agenda are already in demand, but many voters and especially the working class, feel politically alienated and disaffected that their interests are not being pursued.

'Canadian progressives need to hold fast against a Carney government propped up by approval ratings that reflect the public sentiment that “things could be worse” as they become increasingly worse.'

Perspectives Journal No. 4 — Summer 2025 - Broadbent Institute Canadian progressives need to hold fast against a Carney government propped up by approval ratings that reflect the public sentiment that “things could be worse” as they become increasingly worse.

Social Democrats of the North: Moses Coady, Antigonish Awakening | Perspectives Journal Moses Coady's ideas about collectivism and co-operation represented the first real challenge to the conservatism of Nova Scotia’s political culture.

Those who were members of a labour union were more likely than non-union members to see immigration as a positive, with strong contributions to the Canadian economy.

This is not a fluke: many Canadian unions openly advocate for the rights of migrant workers, and union membership correlates with favourable attitudes towards regularization, wherein individuals are given the opportunity to apply for permanent residency.

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Solidarity Across Borders: Canadian Union Membership and Attitudes Towards Immigration - Broadbent Institute Members of a labour union were more likely than non-union members to see immigration as a positive, with strong contributions to the Canadian economy. This is not a fluke.

Ultimately, our current failure to prevent and end homelessness invites two primary solutions: legislating the right to adequate housing with clear metrics and accountabilities, and legislating across all domains of the public sector to address inadequacy of public services perpetuating of poverty.

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The Temptations of Trite: How Policymakers Avoid Addressing Homelessness as a Structural Challenge | Perspectives Journal Where governments deny homelessness exists, researchers and advocates need to guide the changes and make the right to adequate housing a reality.

Il existe donc des solutions, mais le gouvernement revient à la charge avec une politique d’austérité dont l’échec est pourtant documenté depuis des décennies.

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Les coupes dans la fonction publique mettent à mal les engagements du gouvernement fédéral | Perspectives Journal Il existe donc des solutions, mais le gouvernement revient à la charge avec une politique d’austérité dont l’échec est pourtant documenté depuis des décennies.

"Floor-crossing" in Parliaments have produced an intense debate over its legitimacy, which is ultimately rooted in a fundamental disagreement over what an elected representative’s job should be in a democratic system.

Two competing theories of representation, the “trustee” and “delegate” models, can be seen in the debate over floor-crossing, in Canadians’ common-sense political discourse, and in different elements of our Parliamentary system. However, both of these models are failing in Canada’s actually existing political practice.

Instead, a “party-democracy” model of representation holds the promise of leveraging existing institutions to make Canada’s democracy more deliberative and participatory. 🔗 perspectivesjournal.ca/floor-crossing-vs-party-democracy/

Floor-Crossing vs. Party-Democracy | Perspectives Journal To minimize floor-crossing episodes, mass parties can leverage existing political institutions to make Canada’s democracy more deliberative and participatory.