More than a quarter of Canadians think Donald Trump was the real winner of the 2020 United States presidential election.
Vancouver, BC [May 29, 2024] – Almost half of Canadians hold positive views on the tenure of the current American president, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 48% of Canadians say having Joe Biden as President of the United States since January 2021 has been “very good” or “good” for Canada, while three-in-ten (30%) think the current White House dweller has been “bad” or “very bad”.
More than half of Quebecers (57%) and British Columbians (52%) hold positive views on Biden’s time in the White House. The proportions are lower in Atlantic Canada (49%), Ontario (45%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (44%) and Alberta (32%).
Just under three-in-five Canadians (59%) think having Donald Trump as President of the United States from January 2017 to January 2021 was “bad” or “very bad” for Canada, while 29% believe Trump was “very good” or “good”.
A third of residents of Alberta (33%) and Saskatchewan and Manitoba (also 33%) have a positive view of Trump’s term as president. Trump’s rating is lower in Atlantic Canada (30%), Ontario (29%), British Columbia (28%) and Quebec (25%).
“In August 2020, more than seven-in-ten Canadians (73%) regarded Trump’s presidency as detrimental to Canada,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The proportion has dropped by 14 points in just under four years.”
As was the case four years ago, Canadians are divided when asked about the behaviour of elected officials, with 46% (+3) wanting Canadian politicians to speak their mind if they are concerned about the U.S. presidential election, and 46% (=) wanting them to stay neutral and avoid public statements during the American campaign.
Canadians also have contrasting views on whether the country should have a system similar to the American one, where voters can cast a ballot for presidential candidates. Across Canada, 42% of respondents agree with this idea, while 44% disagree and 14% are undecided.
While only 37% of Canadians who voted for the Liberal Party in the 2021 federal election would welcome a “presidential system” in Canada, the proportion rises slightly to 40% among those who backed the New Democratic Party (NDP) and jumps to 56% among those who cast ballots for Conservative Party candidates.
Almost two thirds of Canadians (65%) say it matters to them who wins this year’s presidential election in the United States. Canadians aged 55 and over are more likely to feel this way (74%) than their counterparts aged 35-to-54 (63%) and aged 18-to-34 (57%)
Three-in-ten Canadians (30%) say they would vote for Robert Kennedy Jr. in the 2024 presidential election if they lived in the United States. Support for the independent presidential candidate on this question is highest in Ontario (36%) and lowest in Alberta (14%).
More than a quarter of Canadians (27%) say Donald Trump was the real winner of the 2020 United States presidential election. More than three-in-ten British Columbians (31%), Canadians aged 18-to-34 (36%) and Conservative voters in the last federal election (39%) express this point of view.
Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from May 20 to May 22, 2024, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error – which measures sample variability – is +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490
[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca