Leadnow’s 2024 Community Survey Results
Leadnow is a democratic, bottom-up organization. We take our direction from our community. As part of that process, every year we survey our active supporters to invite them to share their top priorities for the year, and to ask them questions about key issues of the day. This year’s annual survey has just wrapped up, and the results are summarized below.
Over 8,693 people responded in whole or in part to the survey. We offered respondents the choice to do an extended portion with questions about them, their media habits, and their vision for Leadnow; about 6,840 opted to complete the extended portion.
This response rate is slightly below the average for Leadnow community surveys since the start of the pandemic.
Increasingly worried
Each year we lead by asking how Leadnow supporters feel about the state of Canada at that time. This year, over 50% of respondents answered “worried” – the highest we’ve ever seen.
Top priorities
This year, the top four campaign issues approved by the Leadnow community were:
- Defeating the Conservatives in the next Federal Election and ensuring we don’t lose ground to extreme politicians like Pierre Poilievre;
- Tackling the housing crisis by increasing renter protections and building more public, affordable, and climate-safe rental housing;
- Addressing the climate crisis by ending our reliance on fossil fuels and holding Big Oil to account for their pollution;
- And putting an end to corporate profiteering by redistributing ill-gotten corporate profits to pay for the public services we need.
But those weren’t the only topics people selected. We also saw plenty of support for winning a Canadian Disability Benefit, campaigning for electoral reform, defending public healthcare, fighting disinformation, and advancing racial justice.
Federal Politics
Leadnow’s community remains ambivalent about the current government, with almost two thirds of our supporters indicating they take a “they’re with us sometimes but need to be pushed” attitude.
Leadnow’s supporters have long spanned the partisan spectrum, and that remains true today. But partisan alignment is fluid in Leadnow; 71% of our community indicated they would switch votes between parties as needed, either based on platforms or candidates (32%) or strategically (39%).
We also asked about Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. The vast majority of our supporters (73%) indicated that they believe Poilievre is more extreme than past CPC leaders, and represents a major concern.
Finally, 50% of our community indicated that they think it’s time for a change in the Liberal party’s leadership, while another 15% think Justin Trudeau should stay on for just one more election.
Who is Leadnow?
We also asked our community how effective they find us. On the whole, respondents answered that they find Leadnow to be an effective and strategic organization, but want to see us continue to build relationships with allies and invest in new tactics and organizing tools.
Conclusion
First and foremost, these results showcase the strength of the Leadnow community. Thousands of people across Canada have taken the time to meaningfully engage in setting the direction of our organization. Though we come from diverse backgrounds, regions, and partisan leanings, we share core progressive values – and a commitment to getting things done. When we say democracy is our strength, we mean it.
The results also show that the Leadnow community is deeply engaged on the most challenging issues of our day: the climate crisis, the rise of the authoritarian right, the assault on public institutions by an unaccountable corporate class, and the desperate need for affordable housing.
This shows that Leadnow is tied together by a shared willingness to confront these issues head-on, and a shared optimism in our ability to overcome them. Whatever the next year holds for Canada and for Leadnow, there is no doubt that we will rise to the challenge in solidarity with each other – and that is what makes Leadnow a force to be reckoned with.