Essentially, we see elites as people who can bend the laws which are the bases of our democratic system. .

             Who were and who are currently these elite individuals in Canada? We must look back many decades to find out. In the dawn of Canadian political history (early 1800"s), simply due to the military superiority of the British, the head monarch and his or her councillors were the ones who were elite. Elitism was rampant these days. Those who were middle-class Canadians at the time had very little say in the decisions that were made concerning our nation. The monarch had final say in any decision that was made. Next was the King or Queen"s representative - The Governer-General. This person was always appointed, not elected, was always a man, and absolutely had to be British. His council was appointed, and though some were Canadian, all were wealthy, privileged, white men. It is believed these men had little or no interest in the majority of the people. Thus, the Canadian political system at the time was more like a "boys club" rather than a democracy. In those times, the poverty gap was much wider, and therefore an even smaller amount of people controlled political power and all were incredibly wealthy. By the time of confederation, the basis of the way our nation is run had changed. Representatives were elected and they were also Canadian. However, there was no representation by population, the British still had a large influence on the decisions made by the federal government, and those who were rich still wielded an incredible amount of power.

             Today, due to much political and social upheval, political elitism is different. Those who are middle class wield some power these days, but it is through interest groups and labour unions. Also, Britain has little or no say in our decision making. However, the wealthy still control some political power through big business. Also, there are some forms of government that are appointed (now by the Prime Minister), and not elected.