NDP has extended its lead over BC Conservatives in Metro Vancouver (50% to 40%) & Vancouver Island (45% to 33%)
THE governing BC New Democratic Party (NDP) is ahead of the Conservative Party of BC in the final stages of British Columbia’s electoral campaign, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative provincial sample, 45% of decided voters (unchanged since a similar Research Co. poll conducted in early October) would support the BC NDP candidate in their constituency, while 41% (-3) would vote for the BC Conservatives.
The BC Green Party is third with 11% (+2), while 3% of decided voters (+1) would back other parties or independent candidates.
The governing BC NDP has extended its lead over the BC Conservatives in Metro Vancouver (50% to 40%) and Vancouver Island (45% to 33%). The two parties are virtually tied in the Fraser Valley (BC NDP 45%, BC Conservatives 44%) and Southern BC (BC Conservatives 43%, BC NDP 42%), while the BC Conservatives remain ahead in Northern BC (52% to 34%).
“The BC Conservatives keep the upper hand among men (45%) and voters aged 18-to-34 (44%),” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The BC NDP is first among women (50%) and voters aged 55 and over (53%).”
Just over two-in-five likely voters in British Columbia (41%, +1) point to housing, homelessness and poverty as the most important issue facing the province, followed by health care (22%, +3), the economy and jobs (17%, -1), crime and public safety (7%, -1) and the environment (4%, =).
More than half of likely voters in the province (52%, +1) approve of the way Premier and BC NDP leader David Eby is handling his duties. The rating improved for BC Greens leader Sonia Furstenau (45%, +3) and dropped for BC Conservative leader John Rustad (42%, -3).
Furstenau posts a momentum score of +8 (23% of likely voters say their impression of her has improved since the start of the campaign, while 15% say it has worsened). The momentum scores are negative for both Eby (-4) and Rustad (-10).
There was little movement on the “Best Premier” question, with 40% of likely voters (=) selecting Eby and 31% (-1) choosing Rustad. Furstenau is third with 14% (+2), while 15% of likely voters (-2) are not sure.
On issue management, Eby is preferred over Rustad to handle nine different issues: health care (41% to 27%), housing, homelessness and poverty (39% to 30%), creating jobs (38% to 34%), transportation projects (37% to 29%), education (37% to 26%), seniors care (36% to 26%), dealing with municipal governments (35% to 30%), accountability (35% to 30%) and child care (34% to 24%).
Rustad leads Eby on crime and public safety (37% to 34%), while the two main leaders are tied or virtually tied on the economy (37% each), energy (Eby 33%, Rustad 30%) and managing the province’s finances (Eby 35%, Rustad 33%). Furstenau is the top choice to handle the environment (40%, with Eby at 24% and Rustad at 20%).
The top four traits likely voters see in Eby are being a good speaker and communicator (57%, =), having a vision for the future (51%, =), understanding the problems of residents (50%, +2) and being a strong and decisive leader (48%, +1).
The most mentioned traits for Rustad are having a vision for the future (49%, +2), being patronizing (44%, +4), being a good speaker and communicator (42%, -4), being a strong and decisive leader (42%, -3) and understanding the problems of residents (42%, -2).
The top traits for Furstenau are being a good speaker and communicator (44%, +5), being honest and trustworthy (42%, +4), having a vision for the future (41%, +3) and understanding the problems of residents (40%, +5).
Results are based on an online survey conducted from October 12 to October 14 among a representative sample of 800 likely voters in British Columbia. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in British Columbia. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.5 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.