Eby seen more favourably than Rustad as campaign begins: poll

A new poll shows that B.C. NDP Leader David Eby is viewed more favourably than Conservative Leader John Rustad, with the first week of the official election campaign underway.

The online poll from the Angus Reid Institute found 45 per cent of respondents had a favourable view of Eby while Rustad was viewed favourably by 33 per cent of respondents. Around a third of respondents had a favourable view of Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau.

Much like an August survey, the Angus Reid Institute found that the polls show a tight race between the Conservatives and New Democrats, with the NDP polling at 45 per cent, the Conservatives at 44 per cent and the Greens at 10 per cent among decided and leaning voters.

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Dave Korzinski, research director at the Angus Reid Institute, said that the Conservatives were polling well in Metro Vancouver suburbs like Richmond and Surrey, especially compared to the centre-right B.C. Liberals, who ran in the 2020 provincial election.

"When you look at some of those ridings, you've got what were NDP ridings as more now toss-ups, and places where the campaigns are really going to be putting a lot of attention and resources," Korzinski told CBC News.

"What's happened is that if you look at Richmond, Surrey, the B.C. Conservatives are polling about 10 points higher than the B.C. Liberals were in 2020."

Korzinski said those surveyed had some negativity at the start of the official campaign, with both Eby and Rustad not faring well in terms of how voters rated their performance over the last two weeks.

The pollster said those surveyed did not particularly trust the Conservatives, Greens or NDP to deal with housing affordability, but the NDP were viewed more favourably in terms of how they would deal with health care and emergency preparedness.

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The Conservatives, Korzinski said, were viewed more favourably in terms of how they would deal with economic issues, public safety, and the toxic drug crisis.

"For John Rustad, he really does seem to be getting momentum when it comes to these economic issues he's trusted most on — economy, that safety and policing aspect," he said.

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Carbon tax, involuntary care draws support

The poll asked respondents about two policies — the carbon tax and involuntary care for those with addictions and mental health issues — where the B.C. NDP reversed course.

While 43 per cent of respondents said the NDP's moves were "purely political" in nature, Korzinski said around 70 per cent supported Eby's current stance, which would be to abolish the consumer-facing carbon tax if a requirement is dropped by the federal government.

Nearly half of respondents said they would support ending the tax completely, which is what Rustad is proposing.

More than 80 per cent said they would support mandatory medical treatment for those with severe mental health and addictions issues, a position supported by both the NDP and Conservatives.

Korzinski said the NDP's strategy of painting Rustad in an unfavourable light seems to be working, as the poll showed that just over half of respondents believed his views are too extreme.

"We're talking climate change here. Some of the vaccine conversations we've been having, they think that those views are too extreme for a B.C. premier," he said.

Korzinski added that Eby's policy shifts could be fertile ground for the Greens to pick up disenfranchised NDP voters, particularly progressive voters.

"[The Greens] have lost about 54 per cent of their 2020 supporters, [who] say that they're going to go elsewhere right now," he said. "So we'll see if they can turn that around and get a bit of the base back that they had in 2020."

The poll is based on an online survey among a representative randomized sample of 1,215 Canadian adults. For comparison only, a probability sample of this size would have a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

B.C. voters will head to the polls on Oct. 19.