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“As Canadians face – from our neighbour – an existential challenge, an economic crisis, Canadians are showing exactly what we are made of,” said Justin Trudeau in his final major address as prime minister.
Since he was elected in November 2024 for his second term, Trump has imposed, withdrawn, imposed again and withdrawn tariffs on Canadian goods, and he continues to threaten annexation by referring to Trudeau as a governor and suggesting Canada would be happy as the 51st state in his United States.
A recent Angus Reid Institute poll suggests that 55 per cent of Canadians are angry at the tariffs and threats of annexation while 37 per cent say they feel betrayed by Trump. This is playing out in real-time in sports arenas in both countries, where Canadian fans have been heard booing the American national anthem.
This resurgence in national pride will be a factor in the upcoming federal election, according to experts.
“This is going to be an election about flag waving, and whoever waves the Canadian flag most strenuously and talks most about defending Canada,” said Raymond Blake, a professor of history at the University of Regina who says this election will be decided based on which candidate has the potential to be the strongest defender of Canada.
Blake says he believes this election will have a higher voter turnout because people vote in higher numbers when there’s a real crisis and they tend to express themselves at the polls.
“Canadians don’t like Trump and you can make the election all about him and not about anything else,” he said.
Blake cites the most recent elections as examples of how politicians will quickly capitalize on nationalist sentiment. Premier Doug Ford (who won a majority of seats in the Ontario election) publicly stood up to Trump’s threats, making his own counter-threats against the power Ontario supplies to the U.S.
TMU Students Weigh In
Many Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) students have voiced similar concerns over Trump’s threats and are expressing their support for Canadian sovereignty by boycotting U.S.-made products.
“I’m all for it. It’s good to be conscious about supporting Canadian businesses and companies, especially now with the tariffs,” said Michael Kieffer, a fourth-year photography student.
Despite the ubiquitousness of American products in local stores, some students are becoming more savvy about their next purchases, ensuring that the product they buy is Canadian-made.
“I do my best to research and support local businesses, but if I do have to go to the grocery store, I try to buy Canadian as much as possible,” said Mariah Williams, a second-year graphic communications management student.
In response to Trump’s sweeping tariffs, the university announced that they are expanding efforts to prioritize Ontario and Canadian suppliers for all procurement activities.
In an emailed statement, TMU Eats wrote, “our goal is to purchase Canadian whenever possible, and close to 50 per cent of our purchases are already from Ontario. Consistent with the university’s efforts to further prioritize both Ontario and Canadian suppliers for all procurement activities, wherever feasible, we will work alongside Chartwells, the university’s food services provider, to increase the amount of products purchased by Canadian suppliers.”
The Buy Canadian Movement Gains Momentum
More Canadians report avoiding purchasing American products both online and in stores, according to a new Leger poll.
“I think that will strengthen us – I buy foreign products from Chile, Italy, and Mexico – the point is not buying American,” said Ishta Mercurio, who is originally from the U.S. but is a Toronto resident who has found herself boycotting products made in the U.S. She says that she’s committed to avoiding American products as much as possible for a very long time.
“Canadians have this reputation of being nice and being polite – that’s the ethos that we try to have,” said Gabriel Dusing, a Toronto resident and a Canadian citizen for five years. But he says despite that politeness, avoiding American-made products is his way of standing in solidarity with Canada and supporting the national values that he aligns himself with.
Party Leaders’ Nationalistic Campaign
Trump’s aggression and tariffs have overtaken healthcare and affordability as the number one issue for Canadians today, according to a recent Leger poll, and party leaders have started framing their campaign strategies to align with economic independence and national interests.
Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre posted on Twitter/X that he’s not a “Make America Great Again (MAGA) guy,” but more of a “Canada First.” He also emphasized that Canada will never be the 51st state.
Despite his denials, Poilievre’s stance has drawn skepticism from experts like Ron Stagg, a professor emeritus of history at TMU. “People are seeing now what he’s been saying as echoing the kind of things Donald Trump did to get elected,” said Stagg. Stagg points out that despite Poilievre’s attempt to be nationalistic, his campaign messaging closely resembles Trump’s.
The Liberal Party has regained its popularity after declining in polls. They are now leading the Conservatives in the polls, and Mark Carney handily won the leadership race held in March.
Now, Mark Carney – as leader of the federal Liberal Party – is facing the challenge of how to effectively stand up to Trump, publicly affirming that he is prepared to fight.
“I am proud of the response of Canadians who are making their voices heard and their wallets felt — when we are united, we are Canada strong,” said Carney in his leadership acceptance speech.
According to Carney’s website, his preliminary plans include creating ‘One Canadian Economy’ which will remove barriers to internal trade between provinces.
Meanwhile, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh is also fighting against the trade war, which he says could cost Canadian workers, and is encouraging citizens to make the “Buy Canadian, Boycott American” pledge on his party’s website.
It’s unclear how the relations between the U.S. and Canada will play out in the four years of Trump’s presidency. Blake says there might not be much of an impact in the long-term as both countries are so closely tied with each other, historically, economically, and even culturally.
“We have a capacity to forget,” predicts Blake, “once this is all sorted, [Canadians] will be back to loving the United States.”
