Donald Trump is steamrolling his way towards the Republican presidential nomination – a fact that apparently has led many Americans to wonder just how they can get out of the US should he actually win the presidency.
As Trump won state after state on Super Tuesday – he was victorious in seven contests compared to three from his next-closest challenger, Texas Senator Ted Cruz – Google noted a large uptick in searches about how to move to Canada.
“Searches for ‘how can I move to Canada’ on Google have spiked +350% in the past four hours,” tweeted Simon Rogers, the company’s data editor.
Shortly afterwards, another Twitter user noted that searches had risen more than 1,000 percent, which Rogers also acknowledged as “dynamic changing data.” In another tweet, he said, “that’s up from when I tweeted it.”
Even some Canadian lawmakers were getting in on the action, with Toronto City Councillor Norm Kelly posting a link to a page detailing how to immigrate to America’s often-belittled northern neighbor. The post was retweeted 37,000 times.
While Trump has proven remarkably popular with a wide swath of Republican voters, his controversial comments about banning Muslim refugees, building a wall to stop immigration from Mexico, and his unwillingness to adhere to traditional conservative orthodoxy have also sparked concern among other members of the GOP, not to mention Democrats.
Hoping to capitalize on Trumpophobia, the Canadian island of Cape Breton last month started encouraging Americans to move there in the event that The Donald becomes leader of the free world. The island promoted itself as “a place where women can get abortions, Muslim people can roam freely, and the only ‘walls’ are holding up the roofs of our extremely affordable houses.”
"Donald Trump may become the President [sic] of your country. If that happens, and you decide to get the hell out of there, might I suggest moving to Cape Breton Island!"
The possibility of immigrating has even hit newspaper pages, with the New York Daily News publishing an article titled, “The complete guide to fleeing President Donald Trump's America.” It lists a number of different destinations Americans could move to, such as Singapore, Ecuador, Mexico and Canada.
“The mere thought of President Trump taking the oath of office on Jan. 20, 2017, has already led to threats from US citizens that they would leave our red, white and blue behind if The Donald reaches the White House,” the article reads.
“The tycoon-turned-politician won at least seven states on Super Tuesday, putting him one step closer to the White House, and his critics – and they’re plentiful – are one step closer to the border."
While the prospect of a Trump presidency seems unprecedented, nearly every election over the last decade and a half has had some Americans contemplating a move north of the border. According to a Guardian report from last month, some made the move when George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, but overall the amount of Americans immigrating to Canada has stayed constant at roughly 9,000 a year since 2005.