Ontario PCs poised for majority despite disapproval of Doug Ford: Poll

There’s a possibility that Ontario’s Progressive Conservative party will form a majority government, despite the fact that most voters disapprove of Doug Ford, according to a new poll.

Ford won the Ontario PC leadership election over the weekend, beating former provincial legislator Christine Elliott and Toronto lawyer Caroline Mulroney.

The Forum Poll found that among Ontario voters, half (48%) disapprove of Ford as the leader of the Ontario PCs, while a third (36%) approve, and one-sixth (16%) said they don’t know.

Those polled say they are less likely to vote PC in the next election with Ford as leader, with most of those (41%) saying they are much less likely to do so. Meanwhile, 2 in 10 (20%) say they are more likely to vote PC in the next election because of the election of Ford as leader, with one sixth (15%) doing so strongly.

But, according to Forum, if an election were held today, the PCs would secure (44%) of the vote, the NDP would secure a quarter (27%), and the Liberals would secure a quarter (23%). Through the poll, this would translate to the PCs winning 84 seats, while the NDP would serve as official opposition with 29, and the Liberals would secure 11.

Congratulations to @fordnation, our new Leader and Ontario’s future Premier. #onpoli #pcpo pic.twitter.com/hkCcg7CFMN

— Ontario PC (@OntarioPCParty) March 11, 2018

“Doug Ford’s leadership of the Progressive Conservatives has polarized Ontarians, with half saying they are less likely to vote for the party in the next election,” said Dr. Lorne Bozinoff, President of Forum Research.

“However, four in ten would still vote for Ford’s Conservatives, more than enough to propel Ford into the Premier’s office, with a healthy majority. Despite the positive numbers for the Conservatives under Ford, it seems that Ontarians are not so much accepting Doug Ford and his leadership, as they are rejecting the other alternatives.”

Ford replaces Patrick Brown as leader after he abruptly resigned in late-January amid sexual misconduct allegations, which he continues to deny.

The brother of the late Rob Ford will now lead the Ontario PC Party in their bid to unseat Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne in the provincial election on June 7.

The Forum Poll was conducted by Forum Research with the results based on an interactive voice response telephone survey of 923 randomly selected Ontario Voters. The poll was conducted March 11, 2018. Results based on the total sample are considered accurate +/- 3%, 19 times out of 20.

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