Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley. (Canadian Press)

By David Opinko

NEARING THE MIDWAY POINT OF CURRENT TERM

Alberta NDP lead UCP in latest poll

Mar 12, 2021 | 4:29 PM

A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute shows support for Alberta’s governing United Conservative Party (UCP) has taken a hit over the last year-and-a-half.

They conducted an online poll between February 26 and March 3, 2021, getting responses from 603 Albertans.

Among decided voters, 41 per cent said they would vote for the New Democrat Party (NDP) if a provincial election were held today.

38 per cent would try to re-elect the UCP, 10 per cent would cast their ballots for the Alberta Party, while 11 per cent would choose a different party.

Angus Reid has been conducting these polls every three months for the past several years. The UCP’s popularity peaked in June 2019 when 57 per cent pledged their support to the conservatives.

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In that time, the number of would-be NDP voters increased from a low of 28 per cent.

(Supplied by Angus Reid Institute)

Support levels for each party varied depending on where in the province a person lived.

In the North-Central Zone, 43 per cent of respondents supported the UCP while 36 per cent backed the NDP. The Alberta Party earned 10 per cent support locally.

(Supplied by Angus Reid Institute)

The survey showed UCP voters were more often male and either middle-aged or seniors. The NDP had the greatest support among women and those aged 18-34.

Respondents said their top five most important issues are the economy (29 per cent said the province is doing a good job in this regard), jobs/unemployment (28 per cent), healthcare (34 per cent), energy (30 per cent), and COVID-19 response (34 per cent).

Another hot-topic issue in recent years is whether Alberta should introduce a provincial sales tax. 62 per cent of poll respondents were opposed to any form of PST while around 35 per cent would favour a tax rate between one and five per cent.

The full survey results from Angus Reid can be found here.

(Lethbridge News Now)