A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for public office without a reasonable chance of winning. While there is no generally accepted "number" of times a candidate must run before being considered "perennial", contemporary sources note that two or three failed candidacies, followed by another attempt, qualifies a candidate as perennial.[1][2][3]
In Canada, perennial candidates may run with the support of small or fringe political parties, may attempt to become involved with mainstream parties without the backing of that party's membership and/or leadership executive, or may run municipally, where the influence of political parties is diminished.[4]
There are few residency requirements for elected office in Canada. Candidates may run federally in any electoral district as long as they are a Canadian citizen over the age of 18 who is not disqualified based on profession (federal judges, provincial and territorial elected representatives, the Chief Electoral Officer, or Governor General), status as an incarcerated person, or after failing to submit a campaign financial return after a previous campaign.[5] There is no requirement for a candidate to reside in the electoral district where they seek election.[6] Provincial and municipal elections rules generally require a candidate reside within the jurisdiction broadly, but do not require a candidate to reside in the direct electoral district in which they seek elected office.
These lax rules allow perennial candidates to seek elected office across Canada. John Turmel, the Canadian perennial candidate who, according to Guinness World Records holds the records for the most elections contested and for the most elections lost, has sought the offices of Mayor, Member of Provincial Parliament, and Member of Parliament in 71 different jurisdictions across Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia, since 1979.[7]
For the purposes of this story, we are defining the perennial presidential candidate as someone who runs for — and loses — the race to the White House at least twice. And then runs again.
[Mohsen Rezai] has stood three times as president, and never held public office, having also failed in a bid to be elected to parliament in 2000. He is commonly referred to as a "perennial candidate".
...both O'Rourke and Crist are risking their political credibility if they run again and lose, as they've already failed to win two consecutive runs for office. Even worse, they could be marked as perennial candidates.
65 The following persons are not eligible to be a candidate:
Note: You may only seek election in a single electoral district at a time, but you do not need to reside in that district.