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xFusilier said:The only way the Conservatives can hold a minority is with the Bloc Quebecois holding the balance of power in the house. If at the conclusion of this general election the Conservatives hold more seats than either the Liberals and the NDP but less than the two combined you will see a Liberal/NDP coalition.
I don't know if precedent will allow it to pan out that way. The way I understand it, the Party with the most seats gets to go to the Governor General first and to announce that it will form government. No matter how many seats a Lib/NDP coaltion held, if the Conservative Party had more than either, it would be permitted to take a crack at government.
Now, constitutionally, should a Conservative government fall, the Governor General can ask the leader of the opposition if they can form government. But I think the King/Byng affair set up how this will work in the real world (an unelected GG has no authority to assign a new government, only the people do). If a Conservative minority falls, than the Prime Minister will simply call new elections - and this is where my theory of punishment comes into play if a Conservative minority is dumped for political reasons by the left. We didn't see Stephen Harper asked by the Governor General if he could form government a few days back, so why would it happen for a Lib/NDP coalition?