Role of religion in voting in Canada: Not as easy to see as in the U.S., but it's there

 

The more religious Canadians are, they more then tend to vote Conservative. The less religious they are, the more they lean towards the NDP. Unless they are churchgoing mainline Protestants or Catholics, in which case they lean more toward the Liberals and NDP. 

That, in broad strokes and with some exceptions, is the conclusion reached by Sarah Wilkins-Laflamme, a professor of sociology at the University of Waterloo, after analyzing the 2021 Canadian Election Study by Statistics Canada. 

“An individual’s strong religious beliefs and active involvement in a religious group affects their voting behaviour,” she said, adding the more traditionally religious a person is, the more likely it is they will support Conservative candidates “who are perceived to share their values.” 

Wilkins-Laflamme, who studies the impact of religion on Canadian society, is quick to note that while Canada is not like the U.S. when it comes to religion and voting, religion still plays a role in elections in this country — even if it isn’t as easy to see. 

Read my most recent column to learn more, including why if mainline Protestants and Catholics go to church more they tend more towards the Liberals and NDP. 

There’s a priest on the front page of the Free Press—and he’s not even in trouble!

In 2019, when my Religion in the News project started at the Free Press, the very first story we published was about Father Sam Argenziano—a priest who had served the Italian Catholic community in Winnipeg faithfully and well for decades. The story made the front page. 

I liked to tell people back then: “There’s a priest on the front page of the Free Press—and he’s not even in trouble!” 

Fast-forward to today. There’s another priest in the Free Press. Not on the front page, but not on the faith page, either. My story about Winnipeg’s new Archbishop, Murray Chatlain, is in the local section. 

(And when his predecessor, Archbishop Richard Gagnon, retired from his post, I wrote a story about him, too.) 

These stories show the goals of the project: To provide balance to religion coverage and to highlight the role faith plays in the city. The bad things will also be reported; there was a story in the paper about a Manitoba lawsuit for Roman Catholic clergy sexual abuse in the 1980s the same week. 

But those aren’t the only stories about religion that need to be told—as the project, and the story about Archbishop Chatlain, shows. 

Read about Winnipeg’s new archbishop in the Free Press.

Faithful but fearful: American clergy startled by intolerance in the U.S. seek ministry opportunities in Canada

American academics, scientists, researchers, doctors, nurses—all professions where people are thinking about moving to Canada. Now add clergy to that list. 

Since Trump’s inauguration, the the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada has received about 30 inquiries from Lutheran pastors in the U.S. about ministry opportunities in Canada. 

“They’re looking to immigrate to Canada because of concerns about the impact of Trump’s policies on education, healthcare, their own personal safety and the safety of their families,” said Jason Zinko, bishop for the Manitoba and Northwestern Synod of the ELCIC. 

I was able to interview two of those U.S. Lutheran clergy about their reasons for wanting to come to Canada. In both cases, the anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-trans messaging and laws in that country play a big role. 

Read my story in the Free Press.