Federal Political Scene August 2000

Liberals (43%) Still in First Place with the Canadian Alliance (25%) Consolidating their Hold on Second Place while the Tories (10%) and NDP (10%) Remain Mired in Third Place
At 49%, Healthcare Continues at the Top of Canadians' Issue Agenda

Toronto, Ontario -- The results of a recent Angus Reid/Globe and Mail/CTV poll reveal that the Federal Liberals have the highest support among Canadians. If an election were held tomorrow, 43 percent (down 2 points since July) of decided voters would support the Liberals. The Canadian Alliance comes in second place with 25 percent (up 1 point since July) support among decided voters while the PCs (10%) and NDP (10%) have the support of only one in ten Canadians. This month marks the one-year anniversary of healthcare (49%) as the top issue on Canadians' minds.

These are the findings of an Angus Reid/Globe and Mail/CTV poll conducted between August 3rd and August 12th, 2000. The poll is based on a randomly selected sample of 1,500 adult Canadians. The results are accurate to within 177 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire Canadian population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to the 1996 Census data.

Liberals (43%) Still in First Place with the Canadian Alliance (25%) Consolidating their Hold on Second Place while the Tories (10%) and NDP (10%) Remain Mired in Third Place

If a federal election were held tomorrow, the Liberals would receive 43 percent support among decided voters. The gap between the Alliance and the Liberals continues to narrow as support for the Liberals is down two points since July 2000 while support for the Alliance has nudged up one point. The percentage support for each party is listed below:

  • Liberals - 43%
  • Canadian Alliance - 25%
  • PC - 10%
  • NDP - 10%
  • BQ - 11%
  • Other - 2%

Although Liberal support remains strong in Ontario (55%), they have experienced a drop in their two other strongholds: Atlantic Canada (42%) and Quйbec (39%).

Liberal support in Quйbec has fallen 9 points since May 2000 (from 48% to 39%). Correspondingly, support for the Canadian Alliance has increased 5 points - from 2% in May to 7% in August, and support for the Bloc Quйbecois has increased from 40% to 43%.

In Atlantic Canada, Liberal support has dropped 10 points (from 52% to 42%) and support for the PCs has dropped 8 points since May 2000 (from 29% to 21%). Meanwhile support for the NDP in the Atlantic provinces has risen 9 points from 13% to 22% and support for the Canadian Alliance has also increased by 9 points (from 6% to 15%).

The Liberals' lowest support comes from Alberta (22%) and Saskatchewan/Manitoba (24%). The Liberals have seen their support in Saskatchewan and Manitoba drop 16 points since May 2000.

At 25 percent, the Canadian Alliance places second in overall support among decided voters (up one point since July). Support for the Canadian Alliance remains Western based, with the highest support in Alberta (59%) and B.C. (44%). In the important electoral battleground of Ontario, the Canadian Alliance receives 21 percent support and leads the PCs (13%) by 8 points.

At 49%, Healthcare Continues at the Top of Canadians' Issue Agenda

Healthcare has now been at the top of the issue agenda since July 1999. Almost a majority (49%) of Canadians believe that healthcare is the issue which they feel should receive the greatest attention from Canada's leaders.

  • Atlantic Canadians (63%) are most likely to say that healthcare is the most important issue while British Columbians (40%) are least likely.
  • Women (53%) are more likely than men (44%) to place healthcare at the top of the issue agenda.
  • Similarly, older Canadians (58%) are more likely than middle aged (51%) and younger Canadians (39%) to mention healthcare as the most important issue.

The top issues on Canadians' minds are:

  • Healthcare - 49%
  • Education/Schools - 19%
  • Jobs/Unemployment - 14%
  • Taxes - 13%
  • Economy (general) - 12%
  • Deficit/Debt/Government Spending - 10%
  • National Unity - 10%

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Darrell Bricker
President and COO
Public Affairs
Angus Reid Group
(416) 324-2900

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