query: office_contested canadian federal election
supports: The Parliament of Canada is the federal legislative branch of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in the national capital, Ottawa, Ontario. The body consists of the Canadian monarch, represented by a viceroy, the governor general; an upper house: the Senate; and a lower house: the House of Commons. Each element has its own officers and organization. The governor general summons and appoints each of the 105 senators on the advice of the Prime Minister of Canada, while the 338 members of the House of Commonscalled "members of parliament" (MPs)are directly elected by eligible Canadian voters, with each MP representing a single electoral district, commonly referred to as a "riding". The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign (represented by the Governor General) and the Senate. The House of Commons chamber is located in the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. The 2011 Canadian federal election ( formally the 41st Canadian general election ) was held Monday , May 2 , 2011 , to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 41st Canadian Parliament . The writs of election for the 2011 election were issued by Governor General David Johnston on March 26 . Prime Minister Stephen Harper advised the Governor General to dissolve parliament after the House of Commons passed a motion of non-confidence against the government , finding it to be in contempt of parliament . A few days before , the three opposition parties had rejected the government 's proposed budget . The Conservative Party remained in power , increasing its seat count from a minority to a majority government . The Liberal Party won the fewest seats in its history , and party leader Michael Ignatieff was defeated in his riding . The Bloc Québécois lost official party status for the first time since contesting general elections in 1993 . Party leader Gilles Duceppe was defeated in his riding and subsequently resigned as leader . The New Democratic Party won the largest number of seats in its history , enabling it to form the Official Opposition for the first time . The Green Party elected its first member to the House of Commons with its leader , Elizabeth May , becoming MP for Saanich -- Gulf Islands .
candidates: governor prime minister prime minister of canada
answer: prime minister of canada