Earlier this year, a petition began to circulate in the United States that calls for Halloween to be moved to the last Saturday of October, instead of being observed every year on the same day (October 31). The modification is seen as something that could benefit stressed parents due to a perceived reduction of car traffic on a weekend. It could also allow adults to let loose without having to punch the clock the morning after.
Research Co. got a sense of how Canadians would react to a similar proposition on this side of the 49th parallel. Across Canada, 41% of respondents agree with celebrating Halloween on a Saturday every year, while 43% disagree.
There is only one region of the country where observing Halloween on a Saturday is supported by a majority of residents. In Quebec, 53% of residents would be happy with this prospect. Other areas of the country are not particularly keen on this modification, including Ontario (40%), Atlantic Canada (39%), Manitoba and Saskatchewan (38%) and Alberta (34%). The lowest level of support for the proposed change is seen in British Columbia, where only 31% of residents would endorse the move and practically half (49%) would not. Three in 10 British Columbians (30%) are “strongly opposed” to celebrating Halloween on a day that is not October 31.
Results are based on an online study conducted from October 21 to October 23, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in Canada. The margin of error – which measures sample variability – is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
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