Amid 51st state taunts, King's popularity in Canada grows

John Paul Tasker · CBC News

· Posted: May 30, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

King Charles is enjoying a popularity boost and determination is considerably much enactment for maintaining Canada's ties to the Crown present than erstwhile helium assumed the throne, according to nationalist sentiment polls released this week around his two-day sojourn to present a historic throne speech.

After the long-reigning and hugely fashionable Queen Elizabeth died successful 2022, determination was speech crossed the Commonwealth realms, including successful Canada, astir whether it was clip to bash distant with the Crown and clasp republicanism.

The U.K.-based Lord Ashcroft steadfast released a canvass up of Charles's coronation showing peculiarly dire levels of enactment for the monarchy successful Canada, uncovering this state ranked adjacent to past among the 15 countries that person the King arsenic their caput of state.

At the time, conscionable 23 per cent of the 2,020 Canadian respondents surveyed arsenic portion of that poll said they would ballot to support the Crown if determination was a referendum, Lord Ashcroft found.

The representation has changed dramatically successful the aftermath of U.S. President Donald Trump's 51st authorities taunts and sovereignty threats, which has prompted a revival of nationalist pridefulness and newfound affinity for Canadian institutions and symbols, polls suggest.

Also, immoderate radical present person gotten to cognize Charles amended and they similar what they see, pollsters say.

Polling steadfast Pollara surveyed immoderate 3,400 Canadians betwixt May 20 and 24 and recovered Charles's popularity successful Canada has risen substantially since the past clip the steadfast polled connected the contented successful 2022, with the fig of radical holding a affirmative presumption of the sovereign up immoderate 7 percent points to 44 per cent and those with a negative view down 10 points to 23 per cent.

That maturation successful idiosyncratic popularity has fuelled enactment for Canada remaining a law monarchy, Pollara found, with much respondents saying they privation the state to support the Crown (45 per cent) compared to the fig who accidental they privation it gone (39 per cent) — a reversal from the past canvass the steadfast did erstwhile a plurality of radical reported they privation to chopped ties.

In an interrogation with CBC News, Dan Arnold, the main strategy officer astatine Pollara, said determination has been a "statistically significant" summation successful enactment for Charles and maintaining the Crown successful Canada.

"Canadians are feeling amended astir the Crown and I would speculate that's astir apt due to the fact that they're looking for a small spot of stableness successful a satellite that feels unstable right now. And there's thing much unchangeable than an instauration that's been astir for aggregate centuries," Arnold said. 

"This is, to immoderate extent, seen arsenic an instauration that gives america thing successful this combat with Trump."

He noted that portion his numbers inactive aren't arsenic precocious arsenic his mother's were, "we spot a wide summation successful presumption of the radical who consciousness bully astir him and a crisp diminution successful his negatives."

Arnold says Charles's show arsenic King is portion of the crushed why.

"Charles came to powerfulness astatine a clip erstwhile determination was a batch of controversy around him — anybody who's watched The Crown or followed the quality for the past 30 years knows each astir that — and he's been capable to enactment immoderate of that down him oregon astatine slightest tamp it down a spot during his clip connected the throne," Arnold said, adding Charles's crab conflict whitethorn besides person prompted immoderate sympathy.

An Ipsos poll, besides released this week, recovered 66 per cent of the 1,000 radical it surveyed successful May accidental Canada's narration with the monarchy is utile due to the fact that it sets america isolated from our neighbours to the southbound who unrecorded successful a presidential republic — up from 54 per cent who said the aforesaid successful April 2023.

Sixty-five per cent of the Ipsos respondents said the monarchy is an important portion of Canada's heritage, up from 58 per cent 2 years ago.

There's besides been a driblet successful respondents who accidental Canada should chopped ties to the Crown, falling from a precocious of 60 per cent successful January 2020 to 46 per cent present — a effect astir successful enactment with what Pollara found.

And it's not conscionable polls that suggest Charles is enjoying a amended lasting successful Canada — the monarch drew sizeable crowds passim Ottawa connected his circuit with Queen Camilla this week. The turnout was stronger than what greeted him connected his 2022 visit, erstwhile helium came arsenic the Prince of Wales.

Thousands of cheering spectators snaked done the parliamentary precinct to drawback a glimpse of Charles successful the royal landau up of his speech, a warm reception that appeared to punctual immoderate emotion from the sovereign.

"Royals don't usually 'do' emotion, astatine slightest they bash their precise champion to fell immoderate feeling they have. But for immoderate reason, King Charles seemed incapable to bash that connected this juncture astatine the extremity of a short, but highly significant, visit," British broadcaster ITV noted successful its sum of the speech.

"It was the warmest of welcomes and the fondest of returns to a federation and a radical we love," Charles and Camilla themselves said successful a associated connection released aft their visit.

John Fraser, the founding president of the Institute for the Study of the Crown successful Canada, said helium doesn't wage overmuch attraction to polls — enactment for the monarchy tin spell up and down depending connected what's going connected successful the news.

But Fraser said it is evident that much radical are rallying astir the Crown present than they were conscionable a fewer years ago.

"Mr. Chrétien was connected to thing erstwhile helium said we should springiness the Order of Canada to Trump," Fraser said successful an interrogation referring to the erstwhile premier minister's quip, adding that the Trump origin has breathed caller beingness into galore Canadian institutions, not conscionable the monarchy.

"The president whitethorn good person fixed the Crown successful Canada a limb up," helium said.

WATCH | Charles connected the True North 'strong and free': 

Charles's Canadian sovereignty speech successful the throne code this week — and his pledge that the state is "indeed" the True North "strong and free" — besides apt gave the Crown's lasting a boost, Fraser said, particularly among radical who were clamouring to spot the head of state say thing arsenic the state faces Trump's annexationist musings.

"I thought helium handled himself impeccably," helium said.

"This throne code truly cemented Charles's relation successful Canada," added Robert Finch, the chairman of the Monarchist League of Canada. "I've ever said the existent menace against the monarchy isn't republicanism per se but apathy. Well, aft this week, there's a existent consciousness of renewed involvement successful this institution."

He said republicans were counting connected an unpopular King Charles to sever Canada's ties to the monarchy.

"I conscionable don't deliberation that's going to contiguous itself now," Finch said. "There are definite moments successful past that tin marque oregon interruption thing and I think this peculiar tour, successful immoderate portion owed to the timing and the Trump factor, helped marque King Charles's presumption successful Canada unafraid and for that I'm precise grateful."

Still, immoderate chafed astatine the thought of Charles taking a basal for Canada successful the look of Trump. 

"We're telling Donald Trump, 'You're not the overseas billionaire who's our boss. This is the overseas billionaire who's our boss,'" said Pierre Vincent, a spokesperson for Citizens for a Canadian Republic.