A majority of Canadians want Ottawa and the provinces to unite against US tariff threats, according to a new poll from Nanos Research.
The nationwide public opinion poll commissioned by CTV News found that 54 per cent of respondents want the federal and provincial governments to lead the response together, as US President-elect Donald Trump vows to impose 25 per cent tariffs. cent to all products that enter your country.
Two in five Canadians (42 per cent) prefer Ottawa to lead Canada’s response, while only 2.5 per cent thought the provinces should lead the effort to fight the proposed tariffs. Support for a joint response was highest in Quebec (59 per cent) and lowest in British Columbia (51 per cent).
The survey also asked whether Canada should negotiate a new trade deal with the United States that excludes Mexico.
Trump has indicated he plans to reopen the USMCA free trade agreement when it is under review in 2026. The trilateral agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada replaced the previous NAFTA deal, which Trump attacked early in his first presidency.
Trump has also repeatedly expressed concerns about the security of the US-Mexico border and China’s involvement in the Mexican economy.
Canadians were more divided about excluding Mexico from trade negotiations with the United States: 46 per cent supported or somewhat supported the idea, compared to 43 per cent who opposed or somewhat opposed it.
Respondents in Ontario were the most likely to support negotiating a new trade deal without Mexico (52 per cent), while those in Quebec were the least likely (38 per cent). More than one in ten Canadians (11 percent) were unsure.
Methodology
Nanos Research conducted the hybrid random telephone and online survey of 1,045 Canadians, aged 18 and older, between December 30, 2024 and January 5, 2025 as part of an overall survey. The results were statistically verified and weighted by age and gender using the most recent Canadian census information, and the sample was geographically stratified to be representative of Canada. The margin of error for this survey is ±3.0 percentage points, 19 out of 20 times.
