The Canadian Action Party (CAP) was founded by Paul Hellyer, a former Liberal minister of national defence in the cabinet of Lester B. Pearson.

Former Canada Party leader Claire Foss served as vice president of CAP until November 2003.

In 2004, Connie Fogal, an activist lawyer, was acclaimed party leader after David Orchard failed to respond to an invitation to take over the leadership.

[2] A number of CAP members also belonged to the Committee on Monetary and Economic Reform and had been influential in developing CAP's monetary policy, particularly its position that the Bank of Canada, rather than chartered banks, should provide loans to the government, if required, to fund public spending.

CAP also argued for the abrogation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, and opposed current government trade initiatives and any legislation leading to the Free Trade Area of the Americas, Trans-Pacific Partnership and what it saw as integration with the United States and Mexico into a North American Union.