Climate change continues to place as a top ballot box concern in the months leading up to federal election in October, with nearly six in 10 Canadians saying the issue will influence their vote and women more than men, younger voters more than older ones, and voters in Quebec, the Atlantic, and British Columbia giving it higher priority.
“The party that is most likely to lose ballot box support could be the Conservatives, depending on how they manage this,” pollster Nik Nanos said last week, commenting on a Nanos Research survey commissioned by CTV News. “For the Liberals it’s more of a mixed bag, because during their tenure they’ve invested in a pipeline and tried to be environmentally sensitive.”
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The survey asked participants to rate how climate would influence their election vote on a 1-10 scale. Female voters gave a score of 7.8, CTV reports, compared to men at 6.7. Voters in Quebec turned in a rating of 7.8, as well, compared to 7.5 in the Atlantic provinces and British Columbia, 7.4 in Ontario, and 6.1 in the Prairie provinces. The range was more narrow across age groups, with voters aged 18-34 at 7.5, 55 and over at 7.3, and 34 to 64 at 7.04.
“Whenever there are wild fluctuations in the weather, the environment as an issue skyrockets,” Nanos told CTV, “and what we’re seeing right now is that there’s an increasing proportion of Canadians who put the environment as one of the key issues in the next election.” Nanos said.
“If there is any kind of significant weather event” leading up to the vote, he added, “it’ll validate for those people who believe that this should be a top priority.”
