According to a ruling, Democracy Watch's September 26th federal court application challenging the legality of the current election will not be heard by the court prior to the election. A motion had been filed by the organization to expedite the case.

The application will proceed through the court's regular schedule, advises Democracy Watch in a news release.

To voters everywhere in the country, the case should be seen as open and shut: The Prime Minister broke his own law. The details of Bill C-16, An act to amend the Canada Elections Act (assented to on May 3rd 2007), are straightforward:

56.1 (1) Nothing in this section affects the powers of the Governor General, including the power to dissolve Parliament at the Governor General’s discretion.

(2) Subject to subsection (1), each general election must be held on the third Monday of October in the fourth calendar year following polling day for the last general election, with the first general election after this section comes into force being held on Monday, October 19, 2009.

As I've noted previously, Prime Minister Stephen Harper is breaking his own law using the broadest interpretation of the loophole he ensured was in the legislation. A more proper view of the matter can be found in the affidavits supplied with Democracy Watch's application. I'll cite just one as an example, University of Ottawa Professor of Law Errol Mendes:

5.1 The Prime Minister undermined both the letter and the spirit of Section 56.1 of the Canada Elections Act when he advised the Governor General on September 7, 2008 to dissolve Parliament over a year before the October 19, 2009 fixed election date.

The professor continues:

As Parliament was not sitting, there was no loss of confidence in the Prime Minister and the Government in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister can not claim that by meeting the opposition party leaders outside the House and by their refusal to commit to not opposing him in the House of Commons until a certain date he has satisfied the spirit and the letter of the fixed elections law. Affidavit of Errol P. Mendes

There can be no doubt that Stephen Joseph Harper has broken the law of the land, a law which he and his party pushed to enact. Mr. Harper's party, and each of the founding parties and their modern day predecessors have claimed to want to seek an improved democratic system, yet this very election is evidence that what they claim is not met by their actions. In other words a fraud has been committed upon the Canadian public where that which was sold - a promise - was done so on false premises.

A government which so openly—brazenly in fact—breaks the very laws it makes is a government that cannot be trusted to uphold any law. Such a government does not deserve the confidence of the people of this country.

Stephen Harper is betting that Canadians are ignorant of the facts or are otherwise pre-occupied, such that they will collectively and meaningfully muster sufficient recognition of his transgressions against the public trust, at least not in time for the vote on October 14. Lets prove him wrong.

See also: DUFF CONACHER ET AL v. THE PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA ET AL