More than half of supporters of capital punishment (52%) think it would serve as a deterrent for potential murderers.
Vancouver, BC [June 18, 2026] – By a 2-to-1 margin, Canadians are more likely to support the return of the death penalty than to maintain the status quo in murder cases, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 60% of Canadians (+6 since a similar Research Co. poll conducted in February 2025) support reinstating the death penalty for murder in Canada, while 30% (-2) are opposed.
Canada eliminated the death penalty for murder in July 1976.
Half of Quebecers (50%, +5) favour the return of capital punishment in murder cases. The proportions are higher in Atlantic Canada (55%, -5), Ontario (62%, +7), Alberta (65%, +6), British Columbia (67%, +8) and Saskatchewan and Manitoba (also 67%, +13).
Two thirds of Canadians who oppose the death penalty (66%, +5) are worried about a person being wrongly convicted and then executed, while almost half (49%, +9) believe murderers should serve their time in prison, as indicated by a judge.
Fewer opponents cite other problems with the return of capital punishment, such as doubting that it would serve as a deterrent (39%, +3), feeling that taking a convicted murderer’s own life is wrong (35%, -6), and stating that murderers can be rehabilitated (18%, =).
A majority of Canadians who support the return of the death penalty say a convicted murderer has taken a life, so the punishment fits the crime (56%, +7) and think it will serve as a deterrent for potential murderers (52%, =).
Fewer supporters of capital punishment cite other reasons for their position, including closure to the families of murder victims (49%, +7), saving taxpayers money and the costs associated with having murderers in prison (46%, =) and a belief that murderers cannot be rehabilitated (31%, +5).
More than half of Canadians (56%, +3) think capital punishment is “sometimes appropriate”, while just under one-in-four (23%, -1) say it is “never” appropriate and 14% (=) consider it “always” appropriate.
A separate question asked Canadians to choose between two different approaches to deal with murder convictions in Canada. Just under half (49%, -4) select life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, while just under two-in-five (39%, +4) choose the death penalty.
In this question, almost half of Albertans (48%, +9) express a preference for the death penalty over life imprisonment after a murder conviction. The proportions are lower in Ontario (40%, +3), British Columbia (also 40%, +2), Quebec (37%, +11), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (36%, -1) and Atlantic Canada (31%, -7).
“The political divide on how to deal with murder cases in Canada is staggering,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “While majorities of Canadians who voted for the Liberals or the New Democrats in 2025 (57% and 65% respectively) would maintain life imprisonment without parole, most Conservatives (54%) would bring back the death penalty.”
Respondents of East Asian descent are more likely to prefer the death penalty over life imprisonment for murder convictions (48%) than those whose heritage is European (39%), South Asian (also 39%) or Indigenous (33%).
Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from June 4 to June 6, 2026, among 1,001 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to census figures for age, gender and region in Canada. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.1 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
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