Surveys

Sir John A. Macdonald: Canadians’ Perspectives

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Sir John A. Macdonald: Canadians' Perspectives

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From February 4-6, 2022, on behalf of Postmedia, Leger surveyed Canadians about their perspectives on Sir John A. Macdonald.

The survey explores:

  • whether Canadians can correctly identify Sir John A. Macdonald as Canada’s first prime minister
  • whether Canadians have a favourable or unfavourable impression of Macdonald
  • Canadians’ perspectives on media coverage of historic figures who are later found to have taken questionable/outdated actions upon closer scrutiny
  • Canadians’ agreement or disagreement with several statements about Sir John A. Macdonald
  • and more

SOME OF THE KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR SURVEY ON SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD INCLUDE…

  • 66% of Canadians can correctly identify Sir John A. Macdonald as Canada’s first prime minister
  • 67% of Canadians who know enough about Macdonald to have an impression of him have a favourable impression. 33% have an unfavourable impression.
  • A plurality of Canadians want a balanced approach that emphasizes both the positives and negatives of Canadian historical figures.
  • 60% of Canadians feel Sir John A. Macdonald’s legacy should be celebrated, however, 26% feel his historical role should be downplayed when teaching young people.

SURVEY METHODOLOGY

  • A web survey was conducted among 1,546 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, via Leger’s online panel, LEO.
  • The data was collected from February 25 to 27, 2022.
  • As a non-probability online survey, a margin of error is technically not reported. If the data were collected through a probability sample, the margin of error would be ±2.5%, 19 times out of 20.
  • Using data from the 2016 census, the results were weighted according to age, gender and region in order to ensure a representative sample of the population.

Sir John A. Macdonald: Canadians' Perspectives

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Sir John A. Macdonald: Canadians' Perspectives

Download the report