Do Canadians want Canada to become the 51st U.S. state?

The answer

No. The idea of Canadian statehood was genuinely promoted by Donald Trump and discussed in U.S. politics, but Canadian support was small. An Angus Reid poll in January 2025 found 90% of Canadians would vote against joining the United States and 10% would vote in favour; later research also found support below 10%.

Where did this claim come from?

Origin status: Verified primary.

The earliest defensible tracked instance is Donald Trump / Truth Social. Direct Jan. 6, 2025 Truth Social post by Donald Trump stating that many Canadians 'LOVE' the idea of becoming the 51st state.

What actually happened?

Trump repeatedly raised the possibility of Canada becoming the 51st state, so the political pressure and rhetoric were real. A minority of Canadians also expressed support. In the January 2025 Angus Reid survey, 10% said they would vote for Canada to join the United States; support was higher in Alberta at 18% and among people who had voted Conservative in 2021 at 20%.

The claim turns the existence of a real proposal and a measurable minority of supporters into an assertion of broad Canadian consent. The same Angus Reid poll found 90% would vote against statehood, including majorities in every region and political group measured. Subsequent academic survey research likewise placed annexation support below 10%, reinforcing that this was a fringe or minority position rather than a national preference.

Why you're seeing this claim

The claim turns limited or selective expressions of support into a broader mandate for annexation, which can normalize the idea that Canadian sovereignty is negotiable or that statehood is popular. It can benefit U.S. political arguments for annexation and Canadian actors who favour closer integration, while also provoking engagement from opponents. In the tracked instance the framing came directly from Donald Trump, but support levels must still be assessed independently of his political objective.

The key distinction

Canadian public opinion has been overwhelmingly opposed to becoming part of the United States. Angus Reid reported a 90% no / 10% yes split in January 2025. Later peer-reviewed research examining Canadian attitudes around the 2025 tariff dispute found annexation support below 10%. A real U.S. political proposal therefore should not be confused with Canadian democratic consent.

What remains uncertain

The September 7 map shows continued presidential annexation imagery, but it contained no explanatory text and does not establish a formal U.S. annexation policy or any change in Canadian public opinion. No new national polling located in this review materially changes the existing support estimate.

What would change our conclusion

Repeated, methodologically sound national polling showing majority Canadian support for becoming a U.S. state—and ideally corresponding electoral or referendum evidence—would materially change this assessment. Small shifts in minority support would change the numbers but not the current conclusion.

Why it matters to Canadians

This claim goes directly to Canadian sovereignty and democratic consent. It can make political pressure from the United States appear more popular or inevitable inside Canada than the evidence supports.

How this was checked

• Claim provenance: Verified primary.
• Authoritative verification reviewed: Yes.
• Confidence: High.
• Last reviewed: September 14, 2026.

Evidence trail

• Original source: Open source
• Verification evidence: Source 1

Review status

Verdict: Misleading · Confidence: High · Status: Resurfacing · Last reviewed: September 14, 2026

Narrative ID: NAR-20250106-001