Support for Democracy in Canada

Support for Democracy in Canada

A Report from the 2023 AmericasBarometer Survey in Canada

This report focuses on the extent of public support for democracy in Canada, and examines whether this support has been weakening over time. The analysis is based on the results of the Canadian portion of the AmericasBarometer surveys, which track opinions on a consistent set of questions about democracy and its alternatives.

Overall, these surveys do show that Canadians’ satisfaction with the way democracy works in their country, and their preference for democracy as a system of government, have both declined since the middle of the last decade. This decline coincides with a worsening outlook on the country’s economy, particularly among supporters of the official opposition, and in regions of the country outside of Quebec. It may therefore be a function of the regular ups and downs of the economic cycle. The key question that remains is whether satisfaction with democracy will rebound once there is an improvement in the economic environment.

Key findings

• Most Canadians are satisfied with the way democracy works in their country, but in recent years the level of satisfaction has been declining. Satisfaction is currently lower than at any time since this current series of surveys began in 2010.
• Over the past six years, the proportion of Canadians who strongly agree that democracy is better than any other form of government has gradually declined.
• Most Canadians are satisfied with the way their political system works. The level of satisfaction rose somewhat in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The overall decline in satisfaction with the way democracy works in Canada, and in strong agreement that democracy is better than any other form of government, cannot be explained by a change in the views of younger adults.
• Some of the overall decline in support for democracy is due to the very recent emergence of a gender gap, with women currently expressing less support.
• At the beginning of the 2010s, residents of the Prairie provinces were the most likely to be satisfied with the way democracy works in Canada, and Quebecers were the least satisfied – but these relative positions have since reversed.
• Support for democracy in Canada differs significantly between those who think the economy is doing well and those who think it is doing badly. After the 2015 federal election, it has also varied among the supporters of the different federal political parties.
• The proportion of Conservative supporters who give the economy a poor rating has doubled in just the past four years. This growing economic pessimism among Conservative Party supporters has coincided with their declining satisfaction with the way democracy works in Canada.
• A little over one in two say there should be at least major changes to the political system in Canada. Support for major changes varies based on factors such as views on the economy, political partisanship and satisfaction with dem

Read the report on Support for Democracy in Canada.

For more information, contact Dr. Andrew Parkin or the Environics Institute for Survey Research.