CBC poll finds Redford ranked highest in leadership

She only captured the leadership of the governing Progressive Conservatives last fall — but according to a recent poll Alison Redford already enjoys the confidence of nearly 60 per cent of Albertans.

"Women in Alberta definitely like Alison Redford's performance more than [WildRose Party leader] Danielle Smith's," says pollster Bruce Cameron of Return On Insight (ROI).

'Sherman seems to have had very little impact, he doesn't seem to have done much for the party.' — University of Calgary political scientist Anthony Sayers

A poll commissioned by CBC found 56 per cent of Albertans think the rookie premier is leading the province in the right direction.

Only one in five Albertans think Redford is leading Alberta in the wrong direction.

Nearly half, or 46 per cent, of Albertans surveyed approve of Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith's performance.

CBC's poll found a dramatic difference in leadership ratings between men and women.

Women rank Redford higher than men

Alberta's men rate Alison Redford at 54 per cent approval and Danielle Smith at 51 per cent at almost the same level.

Yet, almost two out of three women, or 65 per cent, give Alison Redford high marks, compared to only 41 percent who approve of Smith's job as leader of the Wildrose.

Thirty-nine per cent of voters like the way NDP leader Brian Mason does his job, while 37 per cent approve of newly-minted Liberal leader Raj Sherman.

University of Calgary political scientist Anthony Sayers says he expected polls to show strong support for Redford's leadership.

What's surprising, he says, is the poor performance of the Liberal leader in the public opinion poll.

"Sherman seems to have had very little impact, he doesn't seem to have done much for the party," says Sayers.

Mason polls well in Edmonton

The political scientist also notes that the Wildrose leader has room to grow potentially in an election campaign expected in April.

Approval ratings of the party leaders do not differ substantially by region, with the exception of Edmonton, where Brian Mason's approval ratings of 49 per cent exceed Danielle Smith's 42 per cent.

Nearly 60 per cent of Albertans could not offer an opinion on Alberta Party leader Glen Taylor, who took over the upstart party last year.

The poll surveyed 803 Albertans from Jan. 25 to Jan. 31. 

The poll is considered accurate within +/- 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out 20.