These new Canadians are voting in a federal election for the 1st time — and it’s all about Trump

Gaurav Marik, who became a Canadian citizen two years ago, says the economic impact of tariffs and threats to annex Canada are the most important issues in this election and have him excited about voting federally for the first time.

“I feel that when someone attacks you, and especially externally, you feel much more guarded and you try to defend saying that, OK, this is an identity … we all stand for,” he said. 

As Canada’s relationship with the U.S. has destabilized since President Donald Trump took office, many Canadians have been swept up by a wave of patriotism. And for newly eligible voters like Marik, that feeling of belonging in Canada has been amplified by the pressure coming from south of the border, galvanizing them to head to the ballot box this election.

The Toronto resident was never really politically involved in his home country of India, but says he’s become more politically engaged since coming to Canada. He says Canada’s relationship with the U.S. is not just about him personally. 

“Since I’ve decided to live here long-term, it’s going to really change the course of Canada going forward if these tariffs and this sort of confrontation just continues for years,” he said.

In Calgary, Evaristo Vocaj, who became a citizen in July 2024, also says the biggest issue for him is Canada’s relationship with the U.S.

Vocaj came to Canada from Albania as an international student and worked at Calgary’s Centre for Newcomers for five years. 

And that spirit of being Canadian and fighting for Canadian values is weighing heavily on him. 

He says that for immigrants who’ve gone through the difficult process of becoming citizens, voting matters. 

“Because of that long process that we’ve gone through, we feel like we deserve this now and we feel like we definitely have started feeling, more recently as well, that spirit of being Canadian,”  Vocaj said.

According to Elections Canada, after the 2021 federal election, 89 per cent of new Canadians reported that they voted. That’s less than the 92 per cent of established immigrant voters and 92 per cent of Canadians by birth who reported that they voted.

Elections Canada noted that of those New Canadians who didn’t vote, many indicated that the reason they didn’t cast a ballot was due to having issues with the electoral process, like long lineups at the polls, or due to personal life reasons.

But newly eligible voters were more likely to express satisfaction with the way democracy works in this country than those who are Canadian by birth.

Naiwen Cao also works at the Centre for Newcomers in Calgary. He is voting for the first time in his life and doing a lot of research ahead of election day. While living in China, he says he was never encouraged to vote. 

“I feel a sense of responsibility,” he said. “I must hear different voices. And I’m very excited to even discuss about my vote, before casting the vote. Because for me, the process is more important than the result.” 

Though Cao is concerned about Trump’s annexation threats, he’s also closely watching how the parties are tackling immigration. He isn’t opposed to cutting immigration levels, but he wants to see how each party plans to better integrate newcomers into society. 

“For me, it’s more focused on how you settle the people that you have invited into this country, compared [to] how many people you’re going to accept into the country,” said Cao. 

Helping newcomers find jobs, affordable housing, access to health care and education are what parties should focus on when it comes to immigration platforms, he said.

Even though Marik went through the process of immigration himself, he says he feels resources are being overwhelmed because Canada has accepted too many immigrants.

Marik, who studied law, is experiencing first-hand the struggle of finding a job in his field. He says he has applied for more than 250 jobs and has only heard back from “maybe 20 of them, just for an initial interview.” 

“There’s too many applicants for one particular job in my sector,” he said.

Cao says setting immigrants up for success is key because it allows them to feel more accepted in this country. He says he himself felt welcomed by other Canadians and hopes “Canada can stay as Canada” amid ongoing tensions with the U.S. 

“I’m a proud Canadian. I want to protect this country, I want [to] protect this life, I wanna protect this community that we built together.”