The Rise of Conservative Youth
The promise of a secure future—with a good job, an affordable home and a sense of stability—once felt like a Canadian birthright. For many younger Canadians, that dream now seems like a delusion. Millennials and Gen Zers face a swarm of anxieties, including sky-high housing costs, a depressing job market, the difficulty of starting a family and a swirling culture war that they can’t opt out of. They’ve long been a reliable source of NDP and Labour votes, but a growing number are now finding resonance in Pierre Poilievre’s populism. They see his focus on cutting taxes, unleashing the private sector, tackling crime and prioritizing housing construction as pathways back to the future they feel has disappeared over the past decade. Here, in their own words, five young Canadians explain why they’re pinning their hopes on Poilievre.
Sabastian Marion, 18
International economics student at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver
I’m from Dawson Creek, a rural area in northern B.C. Most people there are conservative, so that’s how I picked up my values. My dad owns a small construction company, and I used to work with him over the summer. He always talked about how taxes were too high. As a business owner, the higher your taxes, the less you can pay your employees, and the less they have to spend. It’s bad for the economy as a whole.
Once I got older, I experienced the impact of taxes for myself. I have less to save for my future. The cost of living in Canada is way too high. We should be one of the most prosperous countries in the world. We have so many natural resources. The Conservatives want to reduce taxes, which will make life more affordable for young people like me. Canada also needs new housing policies. I’m in my first year at UBC, where I have guaranteed accommodations on campus. But next year, I’ll have to move into a shared place off-campus. I’ll probably be paying around $1,300 for a room in a house with six other guys. The Conservatives are planning to increase the housing supply by incentivizing municipalities with perks to increase new housing and reduced red tape to speed up permit approvals.
Instead of raising taxes, Poilievre wants to shrink government spending. I support that: we need to make cuts to social services to get rid of our ballooning deficit. I believe in Pierre’s dollar-for-dollar policy, where for every dollar of government spending, he’ll find one dollar of savings. That will reduce the deficit to lower the burden for my generation.
The Conservatives also support ending safe drug supply, which I believe will help with our opioid crisis. One day, when my friends and I were walking around Vancouver, we ended up on East Hastings, which is a rough part of town. It was horrible. There were drugs and needles everywhere, and it smelled like a sewer. People were selling stolen phones and electronics, presumably to buy more drugs or food. Getting rid of safe supply will push people to get better.
I love the Conservatives’ plan to cut the red tape for small businesses. I’m hoping to start a company with my friends in Vancouver after I graduate. I’m not sure what it’ll be, but I’d like it to help out Canadians. Reducing obstacles will inspire entrepreneurship and innovation. One day, I want to own a home and start a family. And I believe that, under Pierre’s leadership, that will finally be attainable.
Giulia di Lollo, 19
Human rights student at Wilfrid Laurier University, Brantford, Ontario
A few years ago, I was on TikTok and came across a video of Pierre Poilievre talking about George Orwell’s 1984. He was drawing connections between the book and how the Liberal government has eroded free dialogue and debate by advocating for Bill C-11—the Online Streaming Act—which gives the CRTC authority to regulate platforms like YouTube and TikTok. This spoke to me. I thought, Wow, who is this guy?
I’m a passionate free speech advocate. I get that from my mother. We watch the news together and have extensive debates about what we see, openly challenging each other when we disagree. With bills like C-11, the Liberals are restricting dissent. I’ve seen that trickle down to academia. For example, when I expressed my support for Pierre Poilievre’s policies in class, I was shushed. Yet when students voice their hatred for Conservatives, it’s often affirmed by both professors and fellow students. This double standard has restricted my freedom of expression.
The more I learned about Pierre, the more I supported him. He has a lot of integrity. He was adopted by two schoolteachers and had a modest upbringing in Calgary. Pierre advocates for the less fortunate. He’s pushing for lower taxes so hard-working Canadians can keep more money in their pockets. That’s important to me because my family faced a lot of financial difficulties when I was growing up. My parents separated when I was in Grade 4, and my mom worked as a dental receptionist. We were always concerned about money in case she ever lost her job.
I also support Pierre’s views on immigration. I believe it’s essential for our society—my mother arrived here from Bosnia in 1977—but we need to make sure there’s enough infrastructure before letting too many people in. Otherwise young Canadians can’t find work. Last summer, I applied to 125 jobs in retail and food service, with no luck. As a citizen of Canada, I should be able to find a job if I want one.
I don’t think Pierre is perfect. But I believe in a lot of what he stands for, like establishing a meritocracy and moving away from a society that places too much emphasis on the cultural backgrounds of others. He advocates for a Canadian identity and a cultural melting pot. I like learning about different cultures, and I believe diversity is essential, but a collective identity is also necessary to make Canada stronger.
Pierre also wants to create affordable housing. He plans to save money by cutting back on foreign aid and reducing the size of the Canadian bureaucracy. His Building Homes Not Bureaucracy Act proposes increasing the number of housing starts by 15 per cent each year. I feel the impact of the housing crisis every day. I don’t want to live with my family forever and would love to rent an apartment in Ontario. The skyrocketing prices make it difficult to even think about renting. But Pierre gives me hope that one day I’ll own a home.
Bruce Yu, 20
Business student at Western University, London, Ontario
When I was nine years old, during the 2014 provincial election, I saw some political flyers in the mail. My parents explained to me how elections work and shared their belief in small government. They’re from communist China, where the government controlled everything. When they left in the early 2000s, they came to Canada in the pursuit of personal liberty and settled in Markham, Ontario. I’m proud to be Canadian and to live in a strong and vibrant democracy. I often reflect on the fragility of democracy and what we take for granted.
As I got older, I volunteered with Conservative campaigns. My first one was for the 2019 federal election. I had a great time knocking on doors and learning more about the political process. There are a lot of immigrants where I grew up, and I met plenty of people who shared the same life experiences and conservative values as my parents. They believe in liberty and personal freedom, and they’re afraid of the socialism they fled from. It was important for me to fight for their rights.
Around the same time, I heard of Pierre Poilievre. He’d just become the Conservative finance critic, and I was impressed with his ability to ask tough questions. When he ran for the Conservative leadership, I volunteered for his campaign because I thought he was the best choice for the party and for Canada.
Pierre has a unique ability to resonate with younger voters. For one thing, he has a strong social media presence—many of his clips have gone viral, like one of him eating an apple while calmly and confidently answering critical questions from a reporter. The Conservative Party has even turned a meme of that clip into a T-shirt that they sell on their website. I’ve spotted people wearing these shirts while I’m running everyday errands. That’s something I’ve never seen during a political campaign before.
I’m on board with a lot of Conservative policies—especially tax cuts. Right now, the government is taxing every aspect of our lives. I want more of that money in my pocket. If we have more to spend, we have more money back into the economy. That will help make life more affordable for people like me.
Like many people my age, I’m also worried about crime and drug use. I know a Conservative government will address the crisis of crime seriously. When I think about wanting to raise a family in the future, safety is my top priority. Housing is also on my mind. While skilled newcomers are important for Canada’s continued economic growth, our immigration policy needs to be in sync with our housing policy. I support Pierre’s push to tie the number of newcomers to the number of homes built. This is practical and common-sense public policy. It means that my generation will have a better shot at buying homes.
People used to feel discouraged from affiliating themselves with the Conservatives, but it’s different now. They’re realizing it’s a mainstream party. There’s nothing wrong with being a conservative.
Louis Borrelli, 24
Operations manager, Borrelli Gourmet Foods, Windsor, Ontario
I didn’t grow up in a political household. My mother is a nurse and my dad owns a food business selling gourmet Italian and Mediterranean foods, like biscotti, tomatoes and pasta. I have two brothers, and my parents were big on us learning things on our own and forming our own views of the world.
I studied business administration at the University of Windsor and, as part of my major, I took a class in political marketing. It was focused more on the U.S., but that course got me interested in how politics relates to my everyday life. It opened my eyes to the fact that government decisions really do affect me. For example, when a government supports higher income taxes, I get less money in every paycheque.
After I graduated from university in 2023, I joined my father’s business as an operations manager. I was earning a salary, so I invested my savings with the goal of buying a house and moving out on my own. Right now I live with my parents. For young people like me, buying property feels impossible. When my parents bought their home, a nice house in Windsor would go for $400,000. Now it would be over a million dollars. Even a two-bedroom starter townhouse costs $650,000. I’d have to save up for 10 or 15 years just to afford a down payment on a house like that, and I don’t want to wait that long.
I don’t consider myself a Conservative or a Liberal. I don’t think that way. I will vote for a candidate or party that has the policies that are best for Canadians in the moment. I became a supporter of the Conservative Party for this current election when they started introducing ideas relating to freedom of speech, which is extremely important to me. At that point, I decided Poilievre was the best option. When it comes to issues like housing and affordability, the Conservatives also come out on top. They support cutting the red tape on new housing developments and allowing private companies to build the units that we need to meet demand, which would bring costs down and reduce bidding wars. The Conservatives also believe in lowering taxes, which would help me save up faster for that down payment.
I align with the Conservative immigration platform. I think immigration is extremely important. My family employs many immigrants at our company. They’re good, hardworking people. But the Conservatives want to slow immigration down to make sure Canada is ready for these newcomers—so they can afford groceries, pay rent, find jobs. I’m seeing the impacts of immigration on my own community, too. I review job applications for openings at our company and I’ve noticed the volume has increased, especially from newcomers to Canada. Proportionally, there are probably three times as many applications from recent immigrants as from Canadians.
Late last year, I started my own side business, called Stratic AI, to help businesses become more efficient. I believe that the Conservative viewpoint of letting private companies do their thing will trickle down. Employees will earn more money and keep more money in their pockets. That’s going to help stimulate the economy and fix a lot of the problems we’re facing right now.
Gabriel Kelly-Gagnon, 18
Economics student at the University of Calgary
I grew up in the North Shore of Montreal, which is not a conservative area. But my family always leaned right. My mom is originally from Peru. When she left at age 17, the country was plagued by communist terrorism. Freedom became a huge priority for her. My dad is from Quebec, and he grew up in a middle-income household. Neither of them started with much, but they learned that by working hard, and without much help from the state, they could make a good life, build a family and do what they wanted. Now, my mom works in IT and my dad is an economist. As I got older and started reading more, the writing from conservative columnists and newspapers, like the National Post and the Wall Street Journal, resonated with me. COVID changed things too. Inflation was out of control, interest rates went up and my classmates and I found ourselves questioning whether we’d ever be able to own our own homes.
Being among the only conservative families in a neighbourhood of Liberals and Bloc Québécois supporters always made politics a touchy subject. In the summer of 2023, my parents moved our family to Calgary. I had just finished high school, and they were looking for a change. My parents got tired of the politics in Quebec, and we love being close to the mountains. It’s easier when you’re surrounded by people who share your ideas.
I believe that Conservative policies will help me achieve my goals for the future, like owning a house and starting a family in Alberta. The party will cut taxes on the middle class, which will increase my disposable income and make it easier to save up. These things would be more difficult under a Liberal government. I strongly disagree with the Liberals’ decision to increase government size while using consultants to help with government work. If one goes up, the other should go down.
In general, I think young people are becoming more conservative than before. I’m an executive at the University of Calgary’s Conservative Club and I see a lot of young people who are interested in Conservative ideas. When I’m door-knocking, I’ve noticed that young people are usually more receptive to us. In Quebec, some of my friends leaned Conservative but no one was as open about it as I was. Now I’m surrounded by people who have similar interests. It feels great to be around people who share my values and ideas.
