Increase in 'Canada Immigration' Searches After Trump's Election
Especially Sharp Rise in Areas with Strong Harris Support
Former U.S. President Donald Trump succeeded in re-entering the White House and became the president-elect, leading to a surge in online searches for terms like "leaving the U.S." and "moving to Canada." On the 6th (local time), Newsweek reported, "As news spread overnight that the former president (Trump) would return to the White House, many Americans are considering moving north."
Supporters of Vice President Kamala Harris are listening to the concession speech held on the campus of Howard University in Washington on the 6th (local time). Photo by AP Yonhap News
According to Google Trends, which shows how often specific words are searched on the internet, by 8 p.m. that day, searches for "how to move to Canada" increased by 400% compared to the previous day, and "how to legally move to Canada" rose by 200%. Additionally, search terms like "requirements to move to Canada" and "moving from the U.S. to Canada" surged by over 5000% in just one day. Searches related to moving to Canada were especially high in Vermont, Oregon, and Washington?states where support for Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, was strong.
Posts mentioning moving to Canada also increased on social networking services (SNS). According to Newsweek, one user on X (formerly Twitter) wrote, "I'm packing my bags and moving to Canada," which resonated with other users. Many people also shared information on online communities like Reddit and SNS about how Americans can immigrate to Canada. On the same day, the U.S. business magazine Fortune published an article titled "Want to leave the U.S.? Countries that warmly welcome Americans," which detailed various countries suitable for American immigrants, focusing on their advantages. Sharing this article sparked a wave of posts on SNS preparing for a "Trump 2nd term."
The volume of searches for moving to Canada had previously spiked on June 27, after President Joe Biden and President-elect Trump held a TV debate. This phenomenon occurred as Biden was widely considered to have lost the debate, increasing the likelihood of Trump's election. Furthermore, during the 2016 presidential election when Trump won, Canadian immigration websites temporarily crashed due to a surge in traffic.
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