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A number of Canadian politicians have resigned from their posts, citing online abuse as a reason. But there is little data to quantify the amount and nature of that abuse. In a new article by our Senior Research Associate in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Journal, Andrea Mariko Grant explains how The Samara Centre for Democracy tracks and evaluates online abuse targeting Canadian politicians.
We sat down with Andrea Mariko Grant to learn more about her article.
The Samara Centre for Democracy has examined the online abuse facing Canadian MPs through its SAMBot initiative. Why are these findings so important today?
Over the past year, several Canadian politicians, including mayors and Members of Parliament, have stepped down from their roles, pointing to online abuse as a key reason. While many have shared personal stories about how this abuse has impacted their mental health, as well as the well-being of their staff and families, there hasn’t been enough solid data to fully understand the scale and nature of this problem or how deeply it affects elected officials.
What type of online abuse are we talking about?
During the 2021 Federal election, for example, more than one in six tweets directed at political candidates were classified as toxic. These tweets included threats, identity-based attacks, severe insults and inflammatory language. But online abuse isn't just a problem during federal elections. We've also tracked online abuse during provincial and municipal elections as well. In fact, through SAMbot, we've analyzed over 4.1 million tweets received by over 1,500 candidates across 12 elections. We've written four reports, with a new one on the 2023 Alberta election coming out very soon.
How does this abuse affect elected officials?
It shows that abuse, both online and in person, has become a regular part of the job for politicians in Canada. This harms our democracy by influencing not only who chooses to run for office but also who decides to stay in these roles.
We even found first-time candidates are targets of abuse. What type of impact does that have on political hopefuls? If they can expect online abuse from the very beginning of their careers, understandably this may discourage them from ever wanting to step forward again.
But it’s not just elected officials who are impacted. It threatens the health of our very democracy. Earlier Samara Centre research revealed that 47% of social media users in Canada refrain from discussing politics online out of fear of being criticized. Online toxicity hampers our ability to have energetic and nuanced civic discussions on issues and this is something that impacts all Canadians.
How significant is it to have these findings published in The Parliamentarian, which is the official journal of Commonwealth Parliaments?
It is a wonderful opportunity to be able to share the work of The Samara Centre for Democracy with other commonwealth nations. Addressing online abuse isn’t just about protecting political candidates, though that’s important. It’s also about ensuring that all Canadians can take part in our democracy, whether online or in person. This is an insight that healthy democracies around the world can benefit from whether they are part of the commonwealth or not.
Read Andrea Mariko Grant’s full article in the Parliamentarian here.
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