A recent Research Co. poll finds the notion of a province benefitting from becoming the 51st state resonates most -- in Alberta.
30% of respondents in Wild Rose Country believe they would benefit from joining the U.S.
29% of respondents in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario feel the same.
Positive response in Quebec & Atlantic Canada was at 24%. Only 18% of B.C. residents feel the same.
Research Co. President Mario Canseco says the appeal of a province joining the US varies greatly by demographic.
Only 10% of Canadians aged 55 and over perceive benefits. The proportion rises to 27% among those aged 35 to 54, and to 40% among those aged 18 to 34.
Political scientists on both sides of the border, in Bellingham, Washington and Vancouver, say the ongoing 51st state comments from US president-elect Donald Trump could simply be a negotiating tactic as the two sides wrestle over the threatened 25% tariff on all Canadian goods after Trump enters the Oval Office on January 20.
“I think we're in a dangerous moment where Donald Trump, who we know operates as a kind of political bully who finds the weak points and relentlessly attacks them, even if it's only in what seems to be a joking sort of way,” said Stewart Prest, a political science professor at UBC.
The Research Co. poll was conducted online from Dec. 13 to 15 among 1,001 Canadian adults.