For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 1 of 6
PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENTS
Saskatchewan’s Wall Remains the
Highest Rated Canadian Premier
Four premiers—Dexter, McGuinty, Clark and Charest—get negative
reviews from more than half of respondents in their respective provinces.
[OTTAWA – Mar. 27, 2012] – Brad Wall maintains
his position as the most popular premier in
Canada, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll
has found.
The online survey of a representative national
sample of 6,622 Canadian adults asked
respondents in nine provinces about the
performance of their respective premiers.
Saskatchewan’s Wall continues to post the
highest approval rating in the country at 70 per
cent, followed by Newfoundland and Labrador
Premier Kathy Dunderdale with 55 per cent.
About half of respondents in Alberta and Manitoba
approve of their respective heads of government:
Alison Redford (49%) and Greg Selinger (48%).
The rating for New Brunswick’s David Alward is
stable at 41 per cent. Nova Scotia’s Darrell Dexter
is now sixth on the list of premiers at 35 per cent,
tied with Ontario’s Dalton McGuinty.
KEY FINDINGS
 Best Approval Ratings: Wall (SK) 70%,
Dunderdale (NL) 55%, Redford (AB)
49%, Selinger (MB) 48%
 Worst Approval Ratings: Dexter (NS)
35%, McGuinty (ON) 35%, Clark (BC)
33%, Charest (QC) 27%
Full topline results are at the end of this release.
From March 6 to March 14, 2012, Angus Reid Public Opinion
conducted an online survey among 6,622 randomly selected
Canadian adults who are Angus Reid Forum panelists. The
margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/1.2%, 19 times out of 20. The results have been statistically
weighted according to the most current education, age, gender
and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of
the entire adult population of Canada. Discrepancies in or
between totals are due to rounding.
The approval rating for British Columbia Premier Christy Clark has fallen by nine points since August and
now stands at 33 per cent. The lowest ranked premier in Canada continues to be Quebec’s Jean Charest
at 27 per cent.
This month, four premiers hold a disapproval rating above the 50 per cent mark: Charest (67%), Clark
(58%), Dexter (57%) and McGuinty (55%).
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com
For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 2 of 6
The Opposition
The survey also asked respondents to provide an approval rating for all of the opposition party leaders in
their respective province. The list continues to be dominated by New Democratic Party (NDP) leader
Lorraine Michael in Newfoundland and Labrador (55%), followed by Nova Scotia Liberal leader Stephen
McNeil (49%). Two other provincial NDP leaders get a positive review from 47 per cent of respondents:
Adrian Dix in British Columbia and Andrea Horwath in Ontario.
In Alberta and Quebec, Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith (43%) and Parti Québécois leader Pauline
Marois (41%) are backed by at least two-in-five respondents, followed by Saskatchewan’s interim NDP
leader John Nilson (36%), Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative Party leader Hugh McFadyen (33%) and
New Brunswick’s Liberal Party interim leader Victor Boudreau (27%).
Analysis
While Brad Wall maintains an impressive rating in Saskatchewan, the proportion of respondents in
Newfoundland and Labrador and Alberta who are satisfied with their premiers fell by five and four points
respectively since December. The biggest quarterly drop for a sitting head of government was observed
in British Columbia.
Quebecers are now looking at Pauline Marois in a more positive light than they did last year, and the NDP
leaders in Newfoundland and Labrador, British Columbia and Ontario continue to post respectable
numbers. McNeil is supported by practically half of Nova Scotians, 14 points ahead of the province’s
incumbent premier.
These results are part of the Angus Reid Report, a syndicated survey that asks over 50 questions to a
representative national sample of more than 6,000 Canadians, providing an opportunity to compare
Canadian provinces on a wide range of policy issues and performance indicators.
Learn about our electoral record / Consult our surveys / Follow us on Twitter
About Angus Reid Public Opinion
Angus Reid Public Opinion is a public affairs practice headed by Dr. Angus Reid: an industry visionary who
has spent more than four decades asking questions to figure out what people feel, how they think and who
they will vote for. A team of talented and experienced practitioners with a unique and profound
understanding of global issues conduct high quality research throughout the world on a daily basis for
corporations, governments, academic researchers, and non-profit organizations.
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com
For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 3 of 6
About Vision Critical®
Vision Critical is a global research and technology firm that creates software and services solutions for
over 600 clients, including one third of the world’s top 100 brands. The company has offices across North
America, Europe and Australia as well as a Global Partner Program that provides other research
companies and consultants with access to top-of-the-line technology. Its Sparq™ product is the most
widely adopted community panel platform on the planet.
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For more information, please contact
our spokespersons listed in the footnote.
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com
For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 4 of 6
Provincial Governments
Do you approve or disapprove of the performance of each of the following people?
Approve
Disapprove
Not sure
Saskatchewan:
Premier and Saskatchewan Party
leader Brad Wall
70%
23%
6%
Newfoundland and Labrador:
Premier and Progressive Conservative Party
leader Kathy Dunderdale
55%
37%
8%
Alberta:
Premier and Progressive Conservative
leader Alison Redford
49%
41%
10%
Manitoba:
Premier and New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Greg Selinger
48%
40%
12%
New Brunswick:
Premier and Progressive Conservative
leader David Alward
41%
45%
13%
Nova Scotia:
Premier and New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Darrell Dexter
35%
57%
7%
Ontario:
Premier and Liberal Party
leader Dalton McGuinty
35%
55%
10%
British Columbia:
Premier and BC Liberals
leader Christy Clark
33%
58%
9%
Quebec:
Premier and Liberal Party of Quebec
leader Jean Charest
27%
67%
6%
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com
For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 5 of 6
Provincial Governments
Do you approve or disapprove of the performance of each of the following people?
March
2012
December
2011
August
2011
Saskatchewan:
Premier and Saskatchewan Party leader Brad Wall
70%
71%
63%
Newfoundland and Labrador:
Premier and Progressive Conservative Party leader Kathy
Dunderdale
55%
60%
58%
Alberta:
Premier and Progressive Conservative leader Alison Redford
49%
53%
33% (*)
Manitoba:
Premier and New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Greg Selinger
48%
50%
52%
New Brunswick:
Premier and Progressive Conservative leader David Alward
41%
40%
44%
Nova Scotia:
Premier and New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Darrell Dexter
35%
39%
33%
Ontario:
Premier and Liberal Party leader Dalton McGuinty
35%
38%
31%
British Columbia:
Premier and BC Liberals leader Christy Clark
33%
40%
42%
Quebec:
Premier and Liberal Party of Quebec leader Jean Charest
27%
26%
30%
(*) Rating with Ed Stelmach as Premier.
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com
For Immediate Release
Canadian Public Opinion Poll
Page 6 of 6
Opposition Leaders
Do you approve or disapprove of the performance of each of the following people?
Approve
Disapprove
Not sure
Newfoundland and Labrador:
New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Lorraine Michael
55%
32%
13%
Nova Scotia:
Liberal Party
leader Stephen McNeil
49%
30%
22%
British Columbia:
New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Adrian Dix
47%
37%
16%
Ontario:
New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Andrea Horwath
47%
27%
26%
Alberta:
Wildrose Party
leader Danielle Smith
43%
34%
23%
Quebec:
Parti Québécois leader
Pauline Marois
41%
50%
9%
Saskatchewan:
New Democratic Party (NDP) interim
leader John Nilson
36%
32%
33%
Manitoba:
Progressive Conservative Party
leader Hugh McFadyen
33%
51%
16%
New Brunswick:
Liberal Party interim
leader Victor Boudreau
27%
37%
35%
Note: The leader featured on this page is the one with the highest approval rating of all opposition parties
registered in the province.
CONTACT:
Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 613-691-0948, jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com
Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion, 877-730-3570, mario.canseco@angus-reid.com