Two in Three (66%) Canadians Support Extension of Canadian Forces Mission against ISIS in Iraq
The government has indicated its intension to extend the end date of the current mission against ISIS. What is not yet clear is whether the extension in length would be accompanied by an extension of scope - either using Canadian Forces in a combat mission or possibly expanding operations into Syria.
On the matter of an expansion in scope, two in three (65%) Canadian `agree' (25% strongly/39% somewhat) that they `support the use of Canadian Forces on the ground in a combat mission against ISIS in Iraq, down 4 points since the start of February, while one in three (35%) `disagree' (14% strongly/21% somewhat), up 4 points. Moreover, seven in ten (69%) `agree' (31% strongly/38% somewhat) that `we should do everything possible to prevent ISIS from getting its own state, even if it means putting Canadian soldiers on the ground in Iraq', down 4 points, while three in ten (31%) `disagree' (10% strongly/21% somewhat) with this position, up 4 points.
That a majority of Canadians support the use of Canadian troops on the ground against ISIS is not surprising, considering eight in ten (81%) `agree' (30% strongly/51% somewhat) that based on what they've seen, read or heard about the current mission, they'd already `consider it to be a combat mission' (down 2 points), while two in ten (19%) `disagree' (5% strongly/13% somewhat) that the current mission constitutes a combat mission, up 2 points.
Despite the tragic death of Canadian soldier Andrew Joseph Doiron in Iraq, Canadians resolve against ISIS remains strong, even if down slightly: three quarters (74%) `agree' (34% strongly/41% somewhat) that they `support the use of Canadian Forces Fighter Jets in the international coalition's airstrikes against ISIS targets in Iraq' (down 2 points), while one quarter (26%) `disagree' (9% strongly/16% somewhat) with the mission, up 2 points.
A similar proportion (73%) `agrees' (27% strongly/46% somewhat) that they `believe the coalition of allies can win the war against ISIS', down 5 points, while 27% `disagree' (9% strongly/18% somewhat) that the war against ISIS can be won, up 5 points.
Extension of Mission Supported by Most Canadians...
Overall, 66% support an extension past the current end date, while 34% oppose. The data reveal that a majority of almost demographic group in Canada studied in the poll supports an extension of the current mission:
- A majority of Conservative (86%), Liberal (67%) and NDP (56%) voters support extending the current mission against ISIS, but only 38% of Bloc voters support an extension.
- Albertans (79%) are the most likely to support the extension, followed by those living in BC (74%), Ontario (70%), Atlantic Canada (71%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (58%) and Quebec (54%).
- Men (71%) are more likely than women (62%) to support the extension.
- Those aged 55+ (70%) are slightly more likely than those aged 35 to 54 (66%) and 18 to 34 (62%) to support the extension.
Two in Three Support Ground Combat Mission...
Two in three (65%) support the use of Canadian Forces on the ground in a combat mission, while 35% oppose. But some are more likely to support it than others:
- Eight in ten (79%) Conservatives support a ground combat mission, compared to fewer Liberal (62%), NDP (59%) and Bloc (56%) voters.
- Men (66%) and women (63%) show similar levels of support for a combat mission, as do Canadians aged 18 to 34 (67%) compared with those aged 35 to 54 (64%) and 55+ (63%).
- British Columbians (69%) and Albertans (69%) are most likely to support a ground combat mission, followed by those living in Ontario (67%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (66%), Atlantic Canada (64%) and Quebec (56%).
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between March 16 and March 19, 2015, on behalf of Global News. For this survey, a sample of 1,004 Canadians from Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Darrell Bricker, PhD
CEO
Ipsos Reid
Global Public Affairs
(416) 324-2001
[email protected]
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