Samara finds that 55% of Canadians are satisfied with the state of our democracy, 20 points lower than a similar survey in 2004.
Samara finds that 55% of Canadians are satisfied with the state of our democracy, 20 points lower than a similar survey in 2004.
If you use the results from the Canada Election Study, satisfaction has fluctuated over the last fifteen years.
1997: 56%
2000: 63%
2004: 54%
2006: 59%
2008: 68%
2011: 64%
Samara also found that only 36% were satisfied with how MPs were doing their jobs. Specifically, MPs received failing grades for “holding the government to account,” “representing the views of constituents” and “managing individual constituents’ concerns.” And then there’s what MPs received a decent grade for.
Although this bleak report card suggests a need for all-round improvement, one result is particularly worrisome. Canadians awarded MPs the highest marks at representing the views of their party, fully 15 points higher than the mark they awarded for representing the views of the Canadians who elected them to office.
In other words, Canadians feel MPs are doing the best job at the very thing Canadians see as a low priority: representing the views of their political parties.