(08/11/09) -

NDP Leads, Campbell Struggles in British Columbia

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) is ahead in British Columbia, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 42 per cent of respondents would vote for the NDP in the next provincial election, while 34 per cent would support the governing BC Liberals.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) is ahead in British Columbia, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 42 per cent of respondents would vote for the NDP in the next provincial election, while 34 per cent would support the governing BC Liberals.

The Green party is third with 12 per cent, followed by the BC Conservative party with seven per cent. Five per cent of respondents would vote for other parties or independent candidates.

In the 2001 election, the BC Liberals took control of 77 seats, with the remaining two going to the NDP. The New Democrats had administered the westernmost province of Canada under four different premiers since November 1991. British Columbia voters renewed their provincial legislature in May 2005. Premier Gordon Campbell of the BC Liberals earned a new four-year term in office, with 46 seats. The opposition NDP—led by Carole James—elected 33 lawmakers.

In the May 2009 election, the BC Liberals secured a third consecutive majority mandate, with 46 per cent of the vote and 49 of the 85 seats at stake. The NDP received 42 per cent of the vote and won 35 seats.

The approval rating for James stands at 27 per cent. Just 24 per cent of respondents approve of Campbell’s performance, and 13 per cent feel the same way about Green leader Jane Sterk.

On Aug. 4, James expressed dismay at the BC government’s proposal to implement a harmonized sales tax (HST), saying, "People are angry about the tax. They’re angry this is going to cause them undue hardship. They’re also particularly angry the government said they weren’t going to do it during the campaign and then turned around and did it. If the tax is such a wonderful idea, why didn’t [the Liberals] introduce it during the election campaign? Why didn’t they give people a chance to judge it then?"

Polling Data

If a provincial election were held tomorrow in British Columbia, which one of the following parties would you be most likely to support in your constituency?

Do you approve or disapprove of the performance of…?

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 805 adults in British Columbia, conducted from Jul. 31 to Aug. 2, 2009. Margin of error is 3.5 per cent.

Complete Poll (PDF)