Who Supports the Monarchy in Canada?

Who are the most loyal to the Queen, conservatives or liberals?

It’s usually assumed that politically conservative Canadians represent the most reliably pro-monarchy bloc in the country. After all, the modern Conservative Party is supposed to be the heir to the Tory tradition of yore, and the party that once made respect for King, Empire, and hierarchy a key component of their partisan raison d’être. When the Alliance merged with the Progressive Conservatives in 2003, Peter MacKay even demanded that the new Conservative Party of Canada include some language about “honoring Canada’s constitutional monarchy” in their founding charter.

A fascinating 2007 poll released by Angus Reid now casts doubt on that little piece of conventional wisdom, offering findings that should come as vindication to conservative republicans, a disappointment to old-school Tories, and a surprise to the left.

While all voters generally hold roughly similar views on the status of the crown, Liberals and NDPers are now more likely to support the continuation of the monarchy in Canada than Conservatives, and Conservatives are now the group most likely to “strongly support” the idea of breaking with the crown.

Let’s look at the numbers.

The first question was “would you support or oppose Canada ending its formal ties to the British monarchy?”

If these numbers are to be believed, Conservatives are the most likely to be the strongest republicans, while NDPers are most likely to be the strongest monarchists. It’s also worth noting that Conservatives have the lowest rate of “undecideds” on this issue, at only 3%, compared to 7% for Liberals and 8% for NDPers. This all may seem strange by historical standards, but it’s perfectly consistent with what I mentioned in my essay about the monarchy. The monarchy is an issue that is increasingly transcending traditional assumptions of right vs. left, as political opinions readjust to a changing Canadian reality.

Today, left-wing Canadians are generally the most likely to be sensitive about differences between Canada and the United States, and thus most likely to defend institutions that promote those differences. The monarchy is obviously one such institution.

Conservatives, especially those of the former Reform/Alliance strain, are individuals who are generally the most likely to favor cutting government expenses and reforming parliamentary institutions. The monarchy is an expensive institution that doesn’t do much, therefore it’s unsurprising that it’s generally unliked by the same party that favors making the senate elected.

Read the whole poll here.

UPDATE: 2010 numbers

A new poll released in 2010, in the wake of the Queen’s summer visit to Canada, showed some fluctuations in by-party support for the crown. Specifically, the positions of all parties have become a bit more ambiguous and cautious. The Liberals and Conservatives have become closer to each other in terms of pro-monarchy sentiment, while the NDP has become more robustly pro-republic, especially on the constitutional question. But neither the republican side nor the monarchist side enjoys outright support in any party — a fairly big shift from the 2007 poll seen above.

Read the whole poll here.