In the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s passing, many Canadians have had strong reactions to this land’s ties to the British monarchy. An Ipsos poll conducted several days after the monarch’s passing confirmed that Canadians are interested in having a referendum on whether or not Canada keeps its relationship with the crown, with almost 60 per cent of Canadians saying they want a say.
According to Global News, more Canadians want a referendum now than in 2021, with support jumping from 53 per cent last year to 58 per cent in 2022.
Related: This is where the Queen’s beloved corgis will live, now that she’s gone.
Canadians like King Charles less than Queen Elizabeth
Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, told Global News that support for the new King isn’t as strong as it was for the Queen. “There’s never been a great deal of enthusiasm about King Charles,” he said. Less than half of poll respondents showed support for King Charles, with only 44 per cent stating they have favourable opinions about him.
The poll results reveal that 82 per cent of respondents approved of Queen Elizabeth’s performance as monarch, however, only 56 per cent of them say that King Charles can match her performance.
“People aren’t hostile about the new King, but they’re certainly not as enamoured with him as they were with his mother. … That 82 per cent (support) is not just a sympathy number for Queen Elizabeth. She consistently got numbers like this for as long as we’ve been polling,” Bricker said.
With the years of favourable reactions to the Queen, it’s not necessarily a surprise that the new King has some large shoes to fill.
“It’s a very, very hard act to follow,” Bricker said.
