Wildrose, NDP, PCs in virtual tie for voter support, says new poll

The three main political parties in Alberta are running neck-and-neck for voter support, according to a new political poll that measures voter sentiment in the province.

The Wildrose tops the list with 34 per cent of decided voters who say they would cast a ballot for the party if an election was held tomorrow. The NDP and the PCs are tied for second place with the support of 27 per cent of decided voters.

But the poll, conducted in early December by Insights West, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. Taking that margin of error into account places the three parties in a virtual tie.

The Liberals earned five per cent of decided voter support, while the Alberta Party earned two per cent support.

Top issues of concern

The economy remains a top concern for Albertans, with 70 per cent of those surveyed calling it the most important issue facing the province — a five per cent increase from seven months ago.

The poll also found:

• 41 per cent of respondents said the provincial government is doing a good job on energy and pipelines (an increase of 15 percentage points since May 2016)
• 34 per cent approved of how the provincial government is handling climate change (a decrease of six percentage points since May 2016)
• 23 per cent said the provincial government is doing a good job on the economy and jobs (the lowest ranked issue for respondents)

"The Alberta government improved markedly on its handling of energy and pipelines, immediately after the federal approval of the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain project," Mario Canseco, vice-president of public affairs with Insights West, said in a news release.

"However, only about one in four Albertans are satisfied with economic management, which is also the most important issue facing the province."

The online poll of 701 adult Albertans was conducted between Dec. 2 and Dec. 5.