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If you have been following Canadian and American politics recently, one adjective — “radical” — has dominated sound bites and speeches on both sides of the 49th parallel. The word has been used extensively to discredit the policies and ideas put forward by rivals.
We have seen this play out in the early stages of British Columbia’s provincial campaign. One party purportedly has a “radical agenda to legitimize illicit drug use.” Another proposes a tax cut that is deemed “extreme and radical.” And yet another fancies itself as “the only viable alternative to the radical” government.
The message is simple: “Everyone else is wrong. And dangerous.”
Research Co. recently asked Canadians about federal politics. The Conservative Party has a 15-point lead over the governing Liberal Party across the country. We relied on these same respondents to figure out if the current state of affairs can be explained solely by an ideological shift.
In our survey, only 13 per cent of Canadians describe themselves as extreme right or right, while a similar proportion (12 per cent) claim to be extreme left or left. The bulk of responses are seen for centre (33 per cent), centre left (15 per cent) or centre right (14 per cent).
On a regional basis, the largest proportion of Canadians who identify as extreme right or right resides in Alberta (22 per cent). The proportions are lower in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (18 per cent), Ontario (15 per cent), Atlantic Canada (11 per cent), Quebec (10 per cent) and British Columbia (nine per cent).
At the other end of the spectrum, British Columbia and Quebec are home to the largest numbers of residents who regard themselves as extreme left or left (14 per cent each), followed by Saskatchewan and Manitoba (12 per cent), Atlantic Canada (11 per cent), Ontario (also 11 per cent) and Alberta (10 per cent).
Respondents to our poll were asked to pin the same labels to the six main federal political parties and their leaders. What we find is extreme animosity on both ends. More than a third of Canadians (36 per cent) brand the New Democratic Party (NDP) as extreme left or left, and slightly fewer feel the same way about the Liberals (33 per cent) and the Green Party (29 per cent).
The results are eerily similar for the leaders. More than one in four Canadians (26 per cent) regard Green Leader Elizabeth May as extreme left or left, and the proportions climb for both Justin Trudeau of the Liberals (36 per cent) and Jagmeet Singh of the NDP (37 per cent).
More than two in five Canadians (44 per cent) feel both the Conservative Party and its leader, Pierre Poilievre, are extreme right or right. In stark contrast, the People’s Party is regarded as extreme right or right by 25 per cent of Canadians and its leader, Maxime Bernier, is equally branded by 27 per cent.
The difference between Poilievre and Bernier is rooted on a high level of undecided respondents, who do not know enough about the People’s Party — which has never elected a Member of Parliament — to position it on the spectrum. Some Canadians are also befuddled by the Bloc Québécois, with about a third (32 per cent) not knowing where it sits ideologically.
British Columbia is a fascinating microcosm to study how emotion is a more effective motivator than ideology. At this stage, voters in this province give the federal Conservatives a level of support that has not been seen since the only election fought under the Canadian Alliance banner in 2000. British Columbians are also less likely to perceive Poilievre as extreme right (18 per cent) than residents of Quebec (24 per cent), Ontario (also 24 per cent) and Alberta (28 per cent).
It is not a surprise to see Conservative politicians — federal and provincial — making the most of their brand name while adding qualifiers such as “common sense.” Dismay at the current state of affairs is making voters look at these parties as options worth backing, but not at the same rate.
Poilievre’s message is clearly resonating with voters in British Columbia, but there has been no similar emotional connection with Conservative Party of BC Leader John Rustad. Voters in this province are more upset with Trudeau, whose approval rating stands at 26 per cent, than with BC NDP Premier David Eby, whose approval rating stands at 48 per cent.
Trudeau has headed the federal government since 2015, while Eby has served as premier for less than two years. The move from British Columbia’s voters — especially the youngest ones — to the federal Conservatives is based on more than the negativity expressed towards the “radical” choices of the current government. With a federal election still more than a year away, British Columbians regard Poilievre as a superior choice for the top political job in the country (48 per cent) than Trudeau (17 per cent). Rustad’s provincial Conservatives have only a couple of months to achieve a similar feat with the same electorate.
Mario Canseco is president of Research Co.
Results are based on an online study conducted from August 12 to August 14, 2024, among 1,002 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.
