British Columbia

Vote Compass shows B.C. voters want to ban union and corporate donations

A majority of respondents to CBC's Vote Compass website believe British Columbia should ban corporate and union political donations. Of those who participated, 53 per cent strongly agreed with the statement, while an additional 23 per cent somewhat agreed.

53% of Vote Compass participants strongly agree WITH donation ban

From left: B.C. Liberal Leader Christy Clark, B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan and B.C. Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver. (Canadian Press photos)

A majority of respondents to CBC's Vote Compass website believe British Columbia should ban corporate and union political donations. Of those who participated, 53 per cent strongly agreed with the statement, while an additional 23 per cent somewhat agreed. 

When the numbers are broken down by political party, 64 per cent of Green party supporters and 61 per cent of NDP supporters strongly agree with the ban.

Just 34 per cent of B.C. Liberal supporters strongly support it, with 26 per cent of Liberals somewhat agreeing, while 21 per cent of Liberals are neutral on the issue.

The B.C. Liberals have been criticized for cash-for-access fundraisers, where Leader Christy Clark has met in small groups with donors spending, in some cases, more than $10,000 for the opportunity.

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As for undecided voters, 51 per cent of those who filled out the Vote Compass survey strongly agreed with the ban. While younger voters were more likely to remain neutral on the issue, with 27 per cent of those age 18 to 34 taking that position compared to 11 per cent of those 55 or over.

Compass users who make more than $100,000 a year were lower than the average in wanting to see donations banned, with 49 per cent strongly agreeing, compared to 55 per cent of those that make less than $60,000 a year.

Where Vote Compass users live also seems to make a difference on where they stand on banning union and corporate donations.

Outside of Metro Vancouver, 57 per cent are strongly in favour of the ban, compared to 43 per cent in the Fraser Valley.

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