See also: 1996 Canadian incumbents, Events in Canada in 1997, 1998 Canadian incumbents, Governmental leaders in 1997, Canadian incumbents by year

Federal Government

• Head of State - Queen Elizabeth II
• Governor General - Roméo LeBlanc

Cabinet

• Prime Minister - Jean Chrétien

• Deputy Prime Minister - Sheila Copps then Herb Gray
• Minister of Finance - Paul Martin
• Minister of Foreign Affairs - Lloyd Axworthy
• Minister of National Defence - Doug Young then Art Eggleton
• Minister of Health - David Dingwall then Allan Rock
• Minister of Industry - John Manley
• Minister of Heritage - Sheila Copps
• Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs - Stéphane Dion
• Minister of the Environment - Sergio Marchi then Christine Stewart
• Minister of Justice - Allan Rock then Anne McLellan
• Minister of Transport - David Anderson then David Collenette
• Minister of Citizenship and Immigration - Lucienne Robillard
• Minister of Fisheries and Oceans - Fred Mifflin then David Anderson
• Minister of Agriculture - Ralph Goodale then Lyle Vanclief
• Minister of Public Works and Government Services - Diane Marleau then Alfonso Gagliano
• Minister of Human Resources Development - Pierre Pettigrew
• Minister of Natural Resources - Anne McLellan then Ralph Goodale

Members of Parliament

See: 35th Canadian parliament, 36th Canadian parliament

Opposition leaders

• Bloc Québécois - Michel Gauthier then Gilles Duceppe
• New Democratic Party- Alexa McDonough
• Progressive Conservative Party - Jean Charest
• Reform Party of Canada - Preston Manning

Supreme Court Justices

• Chief Justice: Antonio Lamer
• Beverley McLachlin
• Frank Iacobucci
• John C. Major
• Gérard V. La Forest then Michel Bastarache
• John Sopinka (retired November 24)
• Peter deCarteret Cory
• Claire L'Heureux-Dubé
• Charles D. Gonthier

Other

• Speaker of the House of Commons - Gilbert Parent
• Governor of the Bank of Canada - Gordon Thiessen
• Chief of the Defence Staff - Vice-Admiral Larry Murray then General Maurice Baril

Provinces

Premiers

• Premier of Alberta - Ralph Klein
• Premier of British Columbia - Glen Clark
• Premier of Manitoba - Gary Filmon
• Premier of New Brunswick - Frank McKenna then Raymond Frenette
• Premier of Newfoundland - Brian Tobin
• Premier of Nova Scotia - John Savage then Russell MacLellan
• Premier of Ontario - Mike Harris
• Premier of Prince Edward Island - Pat Binns
• Premier of Quebec - Lucien Bouchard
• Premier of Saskatchewan - Roy Romanow
• Premier of the Northwest Territories - Don Morin
• Premier of Yukon - Piers McDonald

Lieutenant Governors

• Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta - Bud Olson
• Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia - Garde Gardom
• Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba - W. Yvon Dumont
• Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick - Margaret Norrie McCain then Marilyn Trenholme Counsell
• Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador - Frederick Russell then Arthur Maxwell House
• Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia - James Kinley
• Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario - Henry N. R. Jackman then Hilary M. Weston
• Lieutenant-Governor of Prince Edward Island - Gilbert Ralph Clements
• Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec - Jean-Louis Roux then Lise Thibault
• Lieutenant-Governor of Saskatchewan - John E. N. Wiebe

Mayors

• Toronto - Barbara Hall
• Montreal - Pierre Bourque
• Vancouver - Philip Owen
• Ottawa - Jacquelin Holzman then Jim Watson

Religious Leaders

• Roman Catholic Bishop of Quebec - Archbishop Maurice Couture
• Roman Catholic Bishop of Montreal - Cardinal Archbishop Jean-Claude Turcotte
• Roman Catholic Bishops of London - Bishop John Michael Sherlock
• Moderator of the United Church of Canada - Marion Best then Bill Phipps