Who does the prime minister and premier of Canada appoint?

Answer 1

In Canada, the Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor General (the Queen's representative). The Governor General selects the person who is best able to command the support of a majority of members of the elected House of Commons.

Once a general election has concluded, the incumbent prime minister has the right to meet the new House of Commons to test whether it supports the current Government. If the Government is defeated on any early key votes, then the prime minister must tender the resignation of the Government to the Governor General. If the prime minister anticipates that the Government would be defeated right away, then the prime minister can tender the Government's resignation before the House has met. The Governor General would then appoint a new prime minister.

What this means, in practice, is that whenever one party holds a majority of seats, the leader of that party becomes the prime minister. When no party holds a majority of seats, the incumbent prime minister can attempt to continue to govern, provided that she or he can command the support of a majority of the House. The Governor General only exercises discretion in the appointment of the prime minister in the event that there is no party with a majority of seats.

In Australia, the system is different, as the Prime Minister appoints the Governor General, not the other way around. The Prime Minister begins by winning preselection in any given electorate to represent the people of that electorate. He/she must win the Federal election in his/her division in order to become a member of the Lower House of Parliament, the House of Representatives. After this, the only criteria required is that he/she be elected as party Leader by the Party he/she represents. Then, whichever party wins the majority of seats in the Fedeal election, the party leader automatically becomes the Prime Minister, and will be sworn in by the Governor General, usually within a few days of the election.

Answer 2

Typically in most countries that have a prime minister, the prime minister is elected by the parliament, and is normally the head of the largest party and so is able to get the majority support of the parliament. The prime minister chooses who the ministers are. The head of state gives the seal of office to the prime minister and the ministers to make all of their appointments official.