Bill S-213: An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (demographic information)

This bill primarily affects registered political parties in Canada that meet a minimum vote threshold (2% of total valid votes or 5% in districts where they ran candidates). These parties would need to publish detailed information about their diversity programs, candidate selection rules, and targets for women candidates on their websites, updating this information annually. The parties would also need to designate a public contact person for diversity-related inquiries. While political parties are not typical businesses, party operations staff, communications teams, and compliance officers would face new administrative and reporting obligations. The bill also creates new duties for Elections Canada to administer voluntary demographic questionnaires to all candidates and contestants across the country.