It wonât surprise many that âSuper Tuesdayâ is the top U.S. election term by Canadians, but the number two most-search term might raise a few eyebrows: Donald Drumpf.
The word âDrumpfâ has been trending on social media since Sunday, when comedian John Oliver made fun of the origin of the Republican front-runnerâs surname
Oliver referenced Trump biographer Gwenda Blair, who pointed out in her book âThe Trumpsâ that the famous billionaireâs name is an Anglicization of the German surname âDrumpf,â a change that happened sometime after The Donaldâs paternal grandparents emigrated from Germany in 1885.
âTrump evokes trump card, trump hand, trump suit -- all terms associated with winning,â Blair wrote. âWhether Donald Trump could have had the same success with any other name is an intriguing question.â
Oliver compared the name Drumpf to âthe sound produced when a morbidly obese pigeon flies into the window of a foreclosed Old Navy.â
He urged Americans to stop âgetting blinded by the magic of his name,â and announced online sales of hats online with the slogan âMake Donald Drumpf Again,â a play on Trumpâs mantra, âMake America Great Again.â
The #3 term Canadians are searching for is âMarco Rubio,â who is expected to come second or third in most states that vote Tuesday. For some reason, Ted Cruz -- who is virtually tied in the polls with Rubio -- isnât even in the top 50 most-Googled terms.
The fourth most popular term is âdrumpfâ (see above).
The fifth most popular is âDavid Duke,â who is a former leader of the white supremacist Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon.
Thatâs trending because when Trump was asked Sunday on CNN whether he rejected an endorsement from Duke and other white supremacists, he answered âI don't know anything about David Duke. OK? ⌠I don't know anything about what you're even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists."
Trump faced widespread criticism for suggesting he didnât know Duke, and for not clearly disavowing an endorsement from a racist. Many pointed out Trump had written a New York Times op-ed in 2000 that specifically mentioned David Duke as ânot company I wish to keep.â
Trump later said he had disavowed the Duke endorsement before speaking with CNN, and he did so again on Twitter.
The Democrats are choosing between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Tuesday, but that is generating far less interest from Canadians than the Republican race. âHillaryâ and âBernieâ arenât even in the top 25 trending U.S. election terms, according to Google.