Written by Megan Buttle, President, Data, Digital and Design; and Doug Anderson, Principal.
Political debates can make it seem like Canadians are living in completely different realities, but when we asked people across the country to share some advice for whoever may become the next Prime Minister, something unexpected happened: we found… agreement. Real, heartfelt, and surprisingly consistent advice, even across party lines.
As part of our recent national omnibus survey, Earnscliffe asked Canadians what they’d tell the next PM if given the chance. And while we braced for a flood of finger-pointing and division, we got something else entirely: passionate, thoughtful messages – and a lot more common ground than you might think from scrolling through your feed.
In fact, our experience from running hundreds of focus groups over the past few years shows a consistent pattern: people who assume they’re at odds often hold remarkably similar values, fears, and hopes for the future. They just express them in slightly different tones — or party colours.
Let’s start with the top piece of advice: “listen to the people.” Sounds simple, but it came up again and again. In fact, it was the most frequently mentioned theme overall — especially among NDP and Bloc Québécois supporters, where it popped up twice as often as it did with Liberal and Conservative voters. Still, it showed up across every party’s base.
Regardless of your party preference or preferred Prime Minister, what is one piece of advice you would you like to offer to whoever is the Prime Minister after the next federal election?
And that’s the thing – once you zoom out, you start to see a pattern. Conservative voters focused on increasing transparency and standing up to Trump, while Liberal voters… also prioritized standing up to Trump. Both groups want to see leadership that’s focused on the interests of Canadians. So maybe it’s not that shocking that voters sometimes flip between parties that are supposedly miles (or should I say kilometres) apart. Maybe we’re not as polarized at our core as we’ve been led to believe.
Don’t bow down to trump there are other markets and look internal first for solutions get rid of the interprovincial barriers.
— CPC voter
Don’t give trump an inch. Put Canada first. Build strong allegiances with other countries.
— LPC voter
Do not give in to Donald (Emperor) Trump. Seek out free trade agreements with Europe and England (and) the Asia Pacific area. Do everything possible to wean ourselves from the Empire of the US. As long as we tie a majority of our exports to the US, we will always be under their thumb.
— NDP voter
Les produits canadiens d’abord, se tenir debout sans avoir peur de Trump.
— BQ voter
Do not suck up to the US. Trump and his cronies just aren’t worth it.
— Undecided voter
Across the board, we saw recurring themes: protect Canadian interests, diversify our economy, and yep – listen up. The advice was often tied to specific policies, but a lot of it was just about approach. Canadians want leaders who are open, accountable, and grounded. And they’re not shy about saying it.
This may help explain why such a large number of voters can so rapidly switch from one party to another.
Now, to be clear – there are differences. Some messages show up more in one camp than another. But if you strip away the branding and partisan filters, you’ll find a lot of people saying basically the same thing. It’s like political déjà vu.
All of this tells us something important: Canadians may not be as dug-in or divided as it seems. The loudest voices are not always the most representative, and when people speak from the heart, without the party talking points – things start to sound a lot more… reasonable.
So, the next time someone says, “We’re too polarized,” maybe remind them: we asked Canadians for advice, and they (mostly) agreed. Now, if only someone would take it.
