The less Canadians are aware of proposed elections changes the more they support them: poll

TORONTO –  More than half of Canadians who are unaware of the Harper government’s proposed changes to the Elections Act support the legislation.

Results from an Angus Reid Global poll released Friday show that 53 per cent of Canadians who are unaware of the contents of the Fair Elections Act support the proposed changes, while 47 per cent say they are opposed.

Nearly 38 per cent of Canadian voters said they haven’t heard of the changes to the Elections Act, while 42 per cent said they have heard of the issues but are not up to speed. Only 20 per cent said they are very familiar with the proposed changes, according to the poll results.

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The Harper government introduced the legislation to toughen up parts of Canada’s election law earlier this month.

The changes would raise the individual political donation limit to $1,500 from $1,200 and increase party spending limits by five per cent, move the office of the commissioner of elections under the mantle of the public prosecutor’s office and tighten ID requirements for voters, among others.

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According to the poll, 91 per cent of all Canadians surveyed support imposing tougher penalties on those who break election rules, while 37 per cent of all surveyed are against transferring election watchdog duties away from the Chief Electoral Officer.

Overall, Canadians are evenly split on the changes — 51 per cent support while 49 per cent oppose, according to the poll.