Most Quebecers agree that an independent Quebec would have much less influence that would a united Canada in dealing with the current threat from the United States

April 15, 2025

This Wednesday (April 16) and Thursday (April 17) Canadians will have the opportunity to see the televised debates between the party leaders in French and English in the Federal election campaign. Relations between Canada and the United States will be critical theme in debates in both languages with President Trump’s talk of making Canada the 51st state and imposing fresh tariffs on Canada. Trump’s statements and actions have given rise to conversations about the importance of unity in responding to the threat. Specifically many Quebec voters are asking is whether under the current circumstances-a party representing a larger country carries more weight in defending Quebec’s interests than might the avowed sovereignist Bloc Quebecois. To provide insight the Association for Canadian Studies commissioned Leger Marketing (April 5 and 6, 2025) to ask whether “an independent Quebec would have much less influence than would a united Canada in dealing with the current threat from the United States”. Some 48% of Quebecers agree while 32% disagree. Underlying the issue of who is best positioned to advocate for Quebec is the issue of the defense of the French language. In that regard, the United States recently listed the Quebec government's French-language reform as a barrier to trade with the United States that for some served as a further reminder of the need to identify ways of being impactful in interacting with the current US administration. The ACS-Leger survey reveals that most Quebecers agree that the French language in Quebec is threatened by the policies of the Trump administration. The survey was conducted by Leger for the Association for Canadian Studies with 1631 respondents in Canada over the period April 5 and 6 , 2025 A margin of error cannot be associated with a non-probability sample in a panel survey for comparison purposes. A probability sample of 1631 respondents (433 in Quebec) would have a margin of error of ±2.5%, 19 times out of 20.