Vaccinated are sold on Russia narrative, poll finds

If you’re vaccinated, you’re more likely to accept the mainstream narrative on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and less likely to have a dissenting view. 

According to a recent EKOS Politics poll, the more vaccinated you are, the more likely you are to fall in line with others who are vaccinated. Conversely, the unvaccinated are much less homogenous and present a spectrum of opinions.

The poll sampled 1,035 Canadian adults and asked them questions about the Russia-Ukraine war.  The responses were categorized by vaccination status. 

When asked “Given the repression of Russian speakers in the Donbas region, Russia was justified in invading Ukraine,” just 2% of the fully vaccinated (three or more doses) agreed, while 88% disagreed (6% said they didn’t know, and 4% said neither). 

However, those vaccinated with two doses had a more heterogenous response, with 63% saying they disagreed, 23% saying neither, and 8% agreeing. 

Those who were unvaccinated presented the largest spectrum, with 27% disagreeing, 26% agreeing, 35% saying neither, and 12% saying they didn’t know. 

Similarly, when asked if Russia is committing war crimes in Ukraine, 88% of fully vaccinated responders agreed. 70% of those vaccinated with two doses agreed. Only 32% of unvaccinated responders agreed, 42% disagreed, 18% chose neither, and 8% said they didn’t know. 

Also according to the poll, most responders who are fully vaccinated would sacrifice their own country’s economic growth to put tougher sanctions on Russia, while most vaccine-free responders were unwilling to place harsher sanctions at the risk of higher prices and slower growth in their own country. 

Vaccination status is, for the most part, split along party lines. Research shows that vaccination rates are lower among Republicans and higher among Democrats. 

A related poll shows that Democrats, more than Republicans, would get the vaccine if they were told to by the government. 

A further survey found that Democrats are much more likely to dramatize the COVID-19 narrative, with 41% thinking that half of all unvaccinated people have been hospitalized with COVID-19. 

If these findings are taken together, there is room to conclude that most Democrats wholeheartedly accept the narrative they’re given, be it on vaccines or Russia, which could explain the EKOS poll.