Federal Platform Survey

Click Here To View CMPAC's Party Comparison

Federal Platform Survey Analysis

During the 44th federal election CMPAC conducted a public survey to see what Muslims in Canada think about each federal party’s platform. To help Muslim Canadians understand key aspects of each party platform, CMPAC has developed a party platform comparison. 

The consultation was a simple survey open to Muslims in Canada and completely anonymous and did not collect any personal information (eg. name or email address) about the respondents. 

This survey was launched on September 10 and ended on election day, September 20. It was issued out to Muslims in Canada through CMPAC’s social media platforms, mosques circulating to their congregants and word of mouth. 

The content of the survey asked individuals about their demographic (eg. if they identify as Muslim Canadian and their province/territory of residence), CMPAC’s party platform comparison resource and its helpfulness, whether they watched the French and/or English leaders’ debate, and to rate each party’s (Conservative Party of Canada, Liberal Party of Canada and New Democratic Party) stance in regards to these topics: 

  • Combating Islamophobia
  • Fighting against systemic racism
  • National security legislation reforms
  • Addressing CRA’s prejudiced audits of Muslim charities
  • Addressing CBSA’s profiling of Muslims and lack of oversight
  • Immigration
  • Supporting women and families
  • Foreign policy in the Middle East
  • Foreign policy addressing the Uyghur genocide
  • Foreign policy on Palestine
  • Foreign policy addressing the crisis in Afghanistan

Demographic

121 individuals took part in this survey – all of whom identified as Muslim Canadian. The vast majority of respondents are from Ontario (74%) followed by Alberta (16%), Quebec (7%) and British Columbia (3%). 

CMPAC’s Party Platform Comparison 

70% of the respondents confirmed they read the CMPAC’s Party Platform Comparison, and 74% of those who read the comparison indicated that it was helpful to understand each party’s platform in regards to issues affecting Canadian Muslims.

How Will You Vote?

61% of respondents answered that their vote will go to the Liberal Party of Canada while 22% of respondents indicated that the New Democratic Party will gain their vote. The Conservative Party of Canada only received 4% of the survey vote. 12% of respondents were undecided.  

 

Analysis of Responses on Party Policies

In accordance with the results of the study, Muslim Canadians are unsatisfied with the Conservative Party’s views on a number of important topics. Despite certain gains made by the Conservatives, respondents expressed widespread scepticism about their future direction and position, especially as it relates to combatting Islamophobia. However, respondents’ dissatisfaction is most likely due to a general lack of confidence in the Conservative Party, as well as a need for greater stakeholder engagement to re-establish trust with the Muslim community in order to properly communicate their ideas.

A substantial difference exists between the proportion of respondents who are unsure about how they rate the Liberals’ stance on a number of key issues and the percentage of respondents who reacted favourably to Liberal policies. In general, reactions range from being unsure about the policy to being unfavourable to being supportive to the policy, and everything in between. In part, this may be attributed to the Liberal Party’s lack of clarity on significant issues impacting the Muslim population, along with a lack of specific, actionable policy proposals.

In a similar vein, when it comes to the NDP, respondents are uncertain and unfamiliar with the party’s stance on critical issues. The comment “I’m not sure” earned the greatest number of votes across all crucial issues. Despite this, 25 percent of those who answered the poll indicated they would vote for the New Democratic Party.

The fact that 12 percent of respondents are undecided about their vote is a significant result from this survey. According to the Canadian Muslim Vote, the Muslim population in Canada is a significant and important demographic that may have an impact on the outcome of elections in more than 100 ridings. Respondents did not support any party platform in its entirety on the basis of the policy issues that impact Canadian Muslims. As a result, political parties must step up their efforts to educate Muslim Canadians about their respective positions in order for people to make educated voting decisions in future elections.