Other Political Activities

Non-Candidacy Political Activities

• The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides all Canadians with “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression” and “freedom of association.” These rights are “subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.”
• Employees’ right to engage in political activities at the federal, provincial, territorial or municipal level is recognized in the Public Service Employment Act, states that “An employee may engage in any political activity so long as it does not impair, or is not perceived as impairing, the employee’s ability to perform his or her duties in a politically impartial manner.”
• Employees do not need permission from the Public Service Commission to engage in non-candidacy political activities.
• Deputy heads shall not engage in any political activities other than voting in an election.

Examples of Non-Candidacy Activities

In addition to voting in a federal, provincial, territorial or municipal election, the following political activities may be conducted outside office hours, subject to certain conditions:

• volunteering or fundraising for a candidate or a political party;
• displaying political material such as a picture, sticker or button or placing a sign on the lawn in support of, or in opposition to, a candidate or a political party;
• attending events, meetings, conventions or other political gatherings in support of, or in opposition to, a candidate or a political party;
• developing promotional material such as campaign speeches, slogans and pamphlets for a candidate or a political party;
• using blogs, social networking sites or a personal website or video sharing to express personal views in support of, or in opposition to, a candidate or a political party.