Re-dubbing movies and printing new editions of books to remove “offensive” words gets a thumbs down in both countries.
Vancouver, BC [July 17, 2025] – Public support for the concept of “political correctness” is on the rise in both Canada and the United States, a new two-country Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of representative national samples, 59% of Canadians and 53% of Americans are in favour of relying on “political correctness” in their respective countries.
The term “political correctness” has been used to describe language and/or behaviour that seeks to minimize possible offenses to racial, cultural and gender identity groups, among others.
“The trendline for political correctness is clear in Canada, jumping from 50% in 2020 to 55% in 2022 and to 59% in 2025,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “In the United States, we are back at the proportion first observed in 2020 (53%), after a severe decline in 2022 (45%).”
Hostility towards “political correctness” reaches 48% among Americans aged 55 and over, but stands at 30% among their Canadian counterparts.
Politically, 44% of Independents and 43% of Republicans in the United States reject the concept of “political correctness”, along with 45% Canadians who voted for the Conservative Paty in the 2025 federal election.
More than half of Canadians (56%, +1) and Americans (58%, +7) reject printing new editions of books that remove words that may be deemed offensive to a specific race or ethnicity.
Opposition is similar to re-dubbing movies to remove words that may be deemed offensive to a specific race or ethnicity, with most Canadians (55%, -1) and Americans (57%, -7) decrying the practice.
Conversely, more than three-in-five Americans (63%, +4) and Canadians (62%, -8) think it is a good idea to add a disclaimer to explain that programs or movies are presented “as originally created” and “may contain outdated cultural depictions.”
One third of Canadians (33%, -1) say they always act “politically correct” because it’s the right thing to do. A larger proportion (43%, +3) claims to sometimes act “politically correct” because it’s the safe thing to do, while just 11% (=) do not act “politically correct” because it’s the wrong thing to do.
In the United States, a third of Americans (34%, +10) claim to always act “politically correct”, while a similar proportion (35%, -6) sometimes act “politically correct” and fewer than one-in-five (17%, -3) say they do not act “politically correct”.
About a third of Americans (37%) and Canadians (33%) believe comedians should “always” or “most of the time” behave in a “politically correct” way.
More than three-in-five residents in each of the two countries believe three groups in society should act in a “politically correct” manner “always” or “most of the time”: teachers (69% in Canada and 71% in the U.S.), politicians (67% in Canada and 66% in the U.S.) and journalists (62% in Canada and 64% in the U.S.).
Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from June 30 to July 2, 2025, among 1,001 adults in Canada and 1,000 adults in the United States. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in each country. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, for each country.
Find our data tables for Canada here, data tables for the United States 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