President-elect Trump recently remarked Canada should be the “51st state” of the United States. Along with comments about annexing Greenland and the Panama Canal, it’s not clear if he is serious or saying off-handed things for political effect. Canadians overwhelmingly have no interest in joining the United States, but what if they did? The results on American politics would likely not be to conservatives’ liking. 

The U.S. Has Always Wanted Canada

American designs on Canada are nothing new.

• The original 13 colonies invited the British colonies in what is today Canada to join them and the Continental Army invaded Quebec to try to stir French Canadians to rebellion but to no avail.
• The U.S. invaded Ontario unsuccessfully during the War of 1812.
• In the 1840s, expansionist President James K. Polk considered taking most of what is today British Columbia for the U.S., but decided to annex the northern half of Mexico instead.
• When the U.S. purchased Alaska in 1867, nationalists were speculating once again about annexing Canada. Britain responded by uniting four separate colonies there into the Dominion of Canada to create a stronger defense against American expansionism. 

The World Wars Solidified US-Canadian Friendship

In the 20th century the United States and Canada allied with Britain and other European countries to defeat belligerent countries in World War I and II. During the Cold War, this alliance was formalized in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (indicated in blue on the map).

Initially formed to oppose the spread of communism, NATO brought lasting peace to North America and Europe, outlasted the Soviet Union until it collapsed, then integrated Eastern Europe and parts of the former Soviet Union into its structure. It is the most powerful alliance in world history, vastly outnumbering and outperforming Russia, its main rival, by every measure of military power. 

Integrated Air Power

Air defenses are an area where the U.S.-Canadian partnership is strong.

• The U.S. and Canada jointly monitor their airspace for nuclear attack and conventional threats.
• After the 9/11 attacks, the Canadian and European air forces helped patrol the skies over the United States for several weeks to intercept any further planes that might be hijacked.
• In 2023 when the U.S. Air Force shot down a Chinese spy balloon off the South Carolina coast, they also downed another unidentified object in Canada’s Yukon Territory.
• As of this writing in January 2025, Canadian firefighting aircraft are dumping seawater on the out-of-control Los Angeles fires. 

Economic Integration

Today, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico are economically integrated by a free trade agreement. In Trump’s first term in office, this deal was renegotiated on more favorable terms. Since free trade was implemented in 1993, the volume of trade with Canada has more than doubled, and with Mexico has more than tripled. Canada now sells 75% of its exports in the U.S. While many manufacturing jobs have moved to Mexico, U.S. agricultural exports to Mexico have grown, as have export-related jobs that are generally higher-paying than manufacturing jobs. The U.S. GDP has grown by about $80 billion as a result of the treaty.

Canada’s Massive Size and Influence

Canada is the world’s second-largest country after Russia, larger than the entire United States. So the idea of adding it as one state to the rest of the country seems strange, rather than adding its individual provinces as states. However, it makes more sense when you consider that, with a population of approximately 40 million people, Canada is comparable in size to California. As a state, its political impact on the country would be massive.

Canadian Impact on Congress

Senate

Every state, regardless of land area or population, sends two Senators to Washington. Currently there are 100 Senators—two for each of the 50 states. If Canada’s 10 provinces were added as individual states, there would be 120 senators with 20 of them Canadian. This is why Washington politicians might prefer to admit Canada as one state instead of 10, to limit their political power in the Senate to just 2 Senators.

House of Representatives

Representation in the House is based on population. If 40 million Canadians joined the country, the House might be expanded from 435 to 487 members to give Canada 52 representatives like California. Alternatively, the total number of representatives could be held constant and reapportioned among the states to make room for Canadian representation. But either way, Canada would have the same proportionate influence in the House. 

Canadian Impact on Presidential Elections

States are represented in the Electoral College by the number of their Senators and Representatives combined. This would mean the State of Canada could have 54 electoral votes like California. Presidential campaigns would spend substantial time criss-crossing Canada and adjusting their positions to appeal to the sensibilities of Canadian voters. 

Canadian Impact on Political Platforms

Canada has conservative voters who have some of the same concerns as American conservatives, but generally speaking, Canada leans much further left than the U.S. in its politics. In order to remain competitive, American political parties would have to adjust their platforms to more centrist or center-left positions. 

Issues Important to Canadians

Here are some examples of issues important to many Canadians that U.S. politicians would have to take into consideration:

• Canadians have free universal healthcare, including abortion access.
• Recreational marijuana is legal nationwide.
• Canada has strict gun control laws, banning assault weapons and strictly regulating the sale of other firearms. 
• Canada abolished the death penalty nearly 50 years ago. 
• Canadians value the environment and have robust environmental regulations to lower carbon emissions and fight climate change.
• They have granted special privileges to French speakers in Quebec and to indigenous people to preserve their cultures and the country’s diversity.
• As a percentage of its population, Canada admits more immigrants than the United States. About 23% of Canadians are foreign-born compared to about 14% of Americans. 
• Canadians take a more modest role on the world stage. They would likely object to high levels of defense spending and aggressive military intervention around the world.

Who Would Like Unification, and Who Would Hate It?

Progressive parties and politicians would actually be the major beneficiaries of unification. 40 million Canadian voters who don’t want to lose their health care or see their environment polluted would unite with American progressives not only to protect those values in the State of Canada, but would try to extend them to the other 50 states as well. The U.S. federal government would likely move toward more progressive policies as a result of Canadian political power, to the chagrin of American conservatives who already suggest that the country would be better off without liberal states such as California or Oregon. 

Why Ruin a Good Thing?

Currently, the United States enjoys access to Canadian resources through our free trade agreement, and access to Canadian territory for national defense through the NATO alliance. It is not necessary for Canada to be politically part of the United States for us to enjoy those benefits. Remaining separate allows each country to organize its society according to its citizens’ values, which in Canada’s case tend to be considerably more liberal than those of the United States. It would certainly be a strange irony if President Trump fulfilled his promise to “Make America Great Again” by making America . . . Canadian. 

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