"The perceptions of residents of Canada and the United States on the origin and development of human beings on earth are decidedly different," as are their views on whether creationism should be part of public school curriculum, according to a July 2, 2026, press release from Research Co. announcing the results of a new two-country poll.
Asked "Which of these statements comes closest to your own point of view regarding the origin and development of human beings on earth?" 62 percent of Canadians favored "Human beings definitely evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years" (35 percent) or "Human beings probably evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years" (27 percent), 20 percent favored "God probably created human beings in their present form within the last 10,000 years" (6 percent) or "God definitely created human beings in their present form within the last 10,000 years" (14 percent), while 17 percent were not sure.
In contrast, asked the same question, 47 percent of Americans — favored "Human beings definitely evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years" (27 percent) or "Human beings probably evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years" (20 percent), 39 percent favored "God probably created human beings in their present form within the last 10,000 years" (10 percent) or "God definitely created human beings in their present form within the last 10,000 years" (29 percent), while 14 percent were not sure. (Recent polls with different wording have found a majority of Americans accepting evolution.)
Asked, "Do you think creationism — the belief that the universe and life originated from specific acts of divine creation — should be part of the school curriculum in your province?" 42 percent of Canadians said that it definitely (18 percent) or probably should (24 percent), 41 percent said that it probably (17 percent) or definitely (24 percent) should not, while 17 percent were not sure. Asked the same question (with "state" for "province"), 51 percent of Americans said that it definitely (25 percent) or probably should (26 percent), 32 percent said that it probably (17 percent) or definitely (15 percent) should not, while 18 percent were not sure.
The poll was conducted online by Research Co. from June 4 to June 6, 2026, among 1001 adults in Canada and 1012 adults in the United States. The data were statistically weighted by census figures for age, gender, and region. The margin of error is +/- 3.1 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
