The vast majority of Canadians say Parliament should be brought back, according to a new poll, but there is disagreement on whether this needs to be done to trigger an election or to deal with the U.S. tariff threat.
The Angus Reid Institute poll released on Jan. 30 surveyed Canadians on which political strategy they favour in the next two months.
Nearly half of respondents—47 percent—said Parliament should resume immediately so opposition parties can vote non-confidence in the government and trigger an election.
Another 30 percent said Parliament should be brought back only if opposition parties agree not to trigger an election, in order to deal with U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threat. Trump said he would impose a 25 percent tariff on Canada if it doesn’t improve border security.
The remaining 23 percent of respondents said they prefer the current status quo.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation on Jan. 6, and asked the governor general on to prorogue Parliament until March 24, citing the need for a “reset” in the House of Commons. The suspension also gives the Liberal Party the opportunity to run a leadership campaign to replace Trudeau.
Related Stories
All opposition parties have pledged to vote non-confidence in the minority Liberal government when Parliament resumes, which would trigger a spring election.
The Conservatives and NDP have called for Parliament to return in recent days to deal with the tariff issue.
Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre said in a Jan. 21 statement prorogation should end so that lawmakers can authorize the funds required for the government’s $1.3 billion border plan, and to consider retaliatory tariffs.
Poilievre said Canada has “never been so weak” now that Parliament is prorogued, and criticized the Liberals for holding a leadership race during this time.
Angus Reid polled Canadians on Poilievre’s statement about the state of Canada and found that 53 percent agreed. On the flip side, 51 percent said these kinds of statements can be “harmful” to negotiations with the United States.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh also called to resume Parliament in order to vote for a financial support package for workers who could be impacted by tariffs.
“We’re going to have these workers’ backs, and to do that, we need to have legislation in place that supports these workers,” Singh said during a Jan. 30 press conference.
The desire to call back Parliament for an early election is stronger in Alberta and Saskatchewan at 61 percent and 60 percent respectively. Meanwhile, respondents in Quebec were least inclined to support an early election, with only 37 percent in favour. Quebecers also demonstrated the highest preference for maintaining the status quo, at 28 percent.
Among all political groups, likely Conservative voters exhibited the highest level of support for the reinstatement of Parliament to prompt an election, with 86 percent in favour. For likely Liberal voters, that figure drops to 9 percent, regardless of whether former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney or former finance minister Chrystia Freeland heads the party.
Carney and Freeland are considered the current frontrunners in the leadership race, according to polls, and have garnered the most endorsements. The Angus Reid polls did not report on scenarios involving other Liberal leadership candidates.
Conservatives currently lead the Liberals by a large margin in voters’ intentions, according to a separate Angus Reid poll from Jan. 27, no matter whether Carney or Freeland wins the leadership race.
With Carney leading the party, 43 percent say they would vote Conservative, while 29 percent would support the Liberals. With Freeland at the helm, the Tory lead grows to 20 points, with 44 percent support compared to 24 percent for the Liberals.
Matthew Horwood contributed to this report.
