Represent by Open North API

⭐ Beginner's Pick Government / No Auth Required Beginner HTTPS
Free to Use Varies (check documentation)

Overview

The Represent API by Open North helps you find Canadian elected officials and government representatives based on location. It is free to use with no authentication required, making it beginner-friendly for civic tech projects. You can look up representatives for any Canadian address, postal code, or electoral district.

💡

Beginner Tip

Start by querying with a postal code to get representatives for that area — it is the easiest way to get meaningful results immediately.

Available Data

Represent by Open North data via REST API
JSON-formatted response data
Freely accessible without authentication

Example Response

JSON Response
{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "result": "Data from Represent by Open North",
    "description": "Find Canadian Government Representatives",
    "timestamp": "2025-01-15T10:00:00Z"
  }
}

Field Reference

representatives_centroid List of elected representatives for the geographic center of the queried location.
name Full name of the elected representative.
elected_office The office title the representative holds (e.g. MP, MPP, Mayor).
party_name The political party the representative belongs to.
email Contact email address of the representative, if available.
district_name The name of the electoral district the representative serves.

Implementation Example

const url = "https://represent.opennorth.ca/";
const response = await fetch(url);
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${response.status}`);
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);

What Can You Build?

Note: These code examples are AI-generated and unverified. Always refer to the official API documentation for accurate usage.

Common Errors & Troubleshooting

404 Not Found The postal code or boundary set you queried does not exist in the database.
Verify the postal code is a valid Canadian postal code and try removing spaces (e.g. use M5V0A1 instead of M5V 0A1).
Empty representatives array The location may fall outside a supported boundary set or the data has not been loaded for that region.
Try specifying a different boundary set in the URL, such as /federal-electoral-districts/ instead of a provincial one.
Rate limit exceeded You have made too many requests in a short period.
Add a delay between requests and cache results for repeated queries on the same postal code.

Matrix Score Breakdown

🌐 Reachability 30/30
⚡ Speed 15/20
🔒 Security 15/15
🛠 Developer XP 15/20
✓ Reliability 7/15
Response Time 222ms

Fully tested on Apr 5, 2026

Technical Specifications

Auth No Auth
HTTPS REQUIRED
CORS UNKNOWN
Category Government
Difficulty Beginner
Verified: 2026-04-04

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