Just One Quarter (24%) of Torontonians Believe Mayor Ford Should Currently Be in Office Today,
Most (76%) Torontonians Want Mayor to Step Down Now
Just one quarter (24%) of Torontonians believe Mayor Ford should `do as he says he will: stay in his job, not repeat any previous behaviour, get back to work because he loves his job and wants to fight for taxpayers and then let people decide in the 2014 election whether he stays on as mayor or goes.
Most (76%) Torontonians, however, Want Mayor Ford to Step Down Now...
Four in ten (41%) believe Mayor Ford should `resign as mayor, get treatment for his admitted conditions and get out of politics all together because he should not be in elected office'. One third (35%) are more lenient, believing he should `step aside as mayor and have someone temporarily be in his place, go into a treatment program for three or four months and then return and resume his role as Mayor to run the city and in the Toronto Election of 2014'.
Mayor's Current Plan of Action Not Acceptable...
Since his apology, Mayor Ford has said he won't be drunk again in public and will not resign or take a leave of absence for health treatment, and that he will stay on the job working for taxpayers who can then vote on October 27, 2014, in the Toronto municipal election and determine his political fate. The data reveal that most (70%) Torontonians believe that his plan is not acceptable (49% not at all/21% not really), while just three in ten (30%) believe his plan is acceptable (11% very/20% somewhat).
Mayor's Approval Rating Falls...
In the last two years, Mayor Ford's approval rating has fallen from an enviable position to one that leaves a potential re-election bid precarious. Four in ten (40%) residents currently `approve' (18% strongly/22% somewhat) of his performance as Mayor of Toronto, while six in ten (60%) `disapprove' (43% strongly/17% somewhat). This has dropped from 49% in June of 2012, and 62% in September of 2011.
His approval rating is highest in the suburbs, and much lower in the core. Approval is highest in Scarborough (49%), his home territory of Etobicoke (45%) and North York (43%), but quite low in York/East York (32%) and the old City of Toronto/Downtown (29%).
Men (44%) are more likely than women (36%) to approve of the mayor's performance, as are those over the age of 55 (43%), compared to those aged 18 to 34 (41%) and 35-54 (37%).
His approval ratings are highest among those without a school diploma (69%) and those with some post-secondary education (48%), and lower among those with only a high school diploma (37%) and university graduates (34%).
Despite Troubles at City Hall, Most (65%) Say Province Shouldn't Intervene...
Some have argued that `Kathleen Wynne and the provincial government should change whatever legislation needs to be changed to intervene and have a temporary superintendent be put in place to remove Mayor Ford from office and to work with Toronto City Council in managing the business of the city because the city government is in crisis'.
Others have argued that Premier Kathleen Wynne and the provincial Government should stay out of what's going on at Toronto city hall and that Toronto's elected Councilors should be allowed to work through these current difficulties because that is how a democracy should work and there really isn't a crisis in getting things accomplished on behalf of their constituents.
Reflecting on these diverging points of view, one third (35%) of Toronto residents believe the province should intervene, while two thirds (65%) believe it should stay out.
Mayor Getting Some Sympathy, But Most Remain Skeptical...
The scandal has rocked the City, dominated headlines across the country, and been a topic of conversation internationally as well. The coverage of the Ford scandal has been so extensive that nearly one half (46%) of Torontonians `agree' (19% strongly/27% somewhat) that `the media should back-off and give Rob Ford some time to show that he has changed his ways'. A slim majority (54%), however, `disagrees' (34% strongly/20% somewhat) that the media should let up on Rob Ford.
Moreover, while the mayor has repeatedly claimed that the allegations against him (that he has subsequently admitted to) are simply a conspiracy driven by Toronto's left-wing elite and media who are opposed to his agenda, just three in ten (29%) Torontonians `agree' (9% strongly/20% somewhat) that it is, while most (71%) `disagree' (53% strongly/18% somewhat).
As part of his admission, the Mayor has claimed that he has nothing left to hide. Only three in ten (29%) residents `agree' (9% strongly/20% somewhat) with the statement that `Mayor Rob Ford has said there nothing left to hide--he has admitted to everything and that the past is the past - and that I believe him'. Most (71%) residents `disagree' (49% strongly/22% somewhat).
In the end, one in three (34%) residents `agrees' (12% strongly/22% somewhat) that they `support Rob Ford when he says he will change and continue to run the city', while most (66%) residents of Toronto `disagree' (49% strongly/17% somewhat) that they support him when he says he'll change.
These are some of the findings of and Ipsos Reid poll conducted between November 8 and 12 on behalf of CTV News/CP24/NEWSTALK 1010. For this survey, a sample of 665 Torontonians was interviewed via Ipsos' online panel. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/-4.3 percentage points had all adults living in Toronto been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Darrell Bricker, PhD
CEO
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
416.324.2001
[email protected]
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