Canada election tells a tale of 2 demographics split on top issues

Exit polls conducted by Ipsos found older Canadians went for the Liberals due to U.S. issues, while younger Canadians took their affordability concerns to the Conservatives.

Canadians split among age groups as well as party lines in casting their votes in Monday’s federal election, exit polls suggested, with different issues driving their choices.

Exit polls conducted by Ipsos exclusively for Global News found Canadians aged 55 and older leaned toward the Liberals, who were seen as the party that would best handle U.S. President Donald Trump and his fraying of the Canada-U.S. relationship.

Younger Canadians aged 18 to 34, meanwhile, picked the Conservatives, based on their perception of who would best address affordability and the rising cost of living.

“What we’ve got are two groups of people: one who remembers a Canada that worked wonderfully (in the 1970s and 1980s) … that Canada is not the Canada of young people today, who don’t identify with that,” said Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs.

Global News is projecting the Liberals under Mark Carney will form a minority government, while the Conservatives were seen to be improving on their last two election performances but also saw Leader Pierre Poilievre lose his Ottawa-area riding of Carleton, which he had held for 20 years.

Both parties gained seats largely at the expense of the New Democrats, which saw their vote share drop to single digits.

The exit poll results suggest the top issue driving the vote of older Canadians was Canada’s relationship with the U.S., with 43 per cent of Canadians aged 55 and over saying so, above the economy and affordability.

The Liberals were overwhelmingly seen as the party best equipped to handle that issue, according to Ipsos — leading the Conservatives by 65 points overall.