Federal Conservative support increases in B.C. before Trudeau resigns: Poll

Support for the federal Conservatives is on the rise in B.C. and Canada, according to a new poll conducted just before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation on Monday.

The Research Co. poll — conducted online from Jan. 3 to 5 — found that the Conservative party has solidified its already-sizable lead over the Liberal party.

With the country on track for an election this year, nearly half, or 47 per cent, of decided voters said they would vote for the Tory candidate in their riding if an election took place tomorrow.

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That’s up seven points since August.

The Conservatives garnered the highest support among decided voters in all provinces except Quebec, where the Bloc Quebecois leads.

In B.C., Tory support rose by four points since August to 54 per cent. Saskatchewan and Manitoba had the largest jump in support, with 17 points, to 57 per cent, while Ontario had a 12-point increase in support for the Conservatives to 51 per cent.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has the highest approval rating among all federal leaders, with 52 per cent, followed by NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh at 39 per cent, Trudeau at 34 per cent, Green Leader Elizabeth May at 32 per cent, Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet at 27 per cent, and People’s Party Leader Maxime Bernier at 23 per cent.

Support for Poilievre was highest in the western provinces, including B.C. and Alberta where Poilievre enjoyed 62 per cent support, and in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, with 64 per cent.

More than half of respondents (54 per cent) said they would be comfortable with Poilievre in charge of Canada’s economy compared with just over a third (34 per cent) who said they’re comfortable with Trudeau at the helm.

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Nationally, 29 per cent of respondents named housing, homelessness and poverty as the most important concern facing the country, followed by the economy and jobs (22 per cent), health care (16 per cent), immigration (13 per cent), and the environment (six per cent).

The Research Co. survey was conducted online among a representative sample of 1,002 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures and the margin of error is expected to be plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.