Yes to PCs, but iffy on Pallister

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This article was published 14/03/2016 (3517 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Progressive Conservatives are poised to win a majority government, although voters still haven’t warmed to PC Leader Brian Pallister, according to a new poll by Forum Research Inc.

An interactive voice-response telephone survey conducted Sunday shows the Tories well ahead of both the NDP and the Liberals, but found Pallister is not as popular as his party.

The poll found 35 per cent of the 930 Manitobans surveyed approved of the job Pallister was doing as the leader of the Opposition, while 34 per cent disapproved. Another 32 per cent had no opinion.

Premier Greg Selinger received the approval of 19 per cent of those surveyed, while 62 per cent disapproved of the job he was doing as premier and 19 per cent said they didn’t know. Twenty-one per cent of Manitobans surveyed approved of Rana Bokhari’s performance as Liberal leader, while 36 per cent disapproved and 42 per cent said they didn’t know.

According to the poll, 46 per cent of voters support, or are leaning toward supporting, the PCs, while 23 per cent back the Liberals and 22 per cent support the NDP. The Green party received eight per cent support.

In an accompanying analysis, Forum determined the party support would translate into 39 seats for the Tories in the legislature, 13 for the NDP and five for the Liberals. Currently, the NDP holds 35 seats, the PCs 19 and the Liberals one. There are two vacancies.

Meanwhile, three in 10 Manitobans believe Pallister would make the best premier — about twice as many as those who believe Selinger would be best. Just one in 10 polled see Bokhari as the best premier. About a quarter of voters said none of them would be best, while one in five said they didn’t know who would be best.

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“Despite his party’s substantial lead in this poll, it appears Mr. Pallister lacks the personal appeal that would allow him to match his party’s performance,” Forum’s Lorne Bozinoff said in an accompanying commentary. “On the other hand, Premier Selinger has about the same, although diminished, appeal as his party. Rana Bokhari has yet to make the kind of impression which will allow her to take advantage of her party’s current parity with the incumbents.”

The Progressive Conservative vote is highest among voters aged 55 to 64, those earning between $80,000 and $100,000, those living outside Winnipeg and those who are the least educated. The PCs received support from 49 per cent of men and 43 per cent of women.

The poll results from an interactive voice response telephone survey of 930 randomly selected Manitoba voters are considered accurate +/- 3 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca