Danielle Smith approval rating holds steady at 45%: poll

A new poll from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds that Alberta Danielle Smith’s approval rating once again remains relatively unchanged.

The latest quarterly data shows Smith has an approval rating of 45 per cent in December, down just one percentage point from the previous poll in September.

A total of 404 randomly selected Albertans were polled in the survey from Nov. 29 to Dec. 5, 2024, with a margin of error of plus or minus five per cent.

Smith ranks seventh out of nine premiers on the list.

“It’s holding steady,” said Smith.

“I think that’s a demonstration that when you campaign on doing things and then you do then people will support you, so I’m glad to see that.”

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew topped the Angus Reid poll again for the fifth consecutive quarter with 67 per cent approval.

The next most popular premiers are Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston (55 per cent), New Brunswick’s Susan Holt (54 per cent) and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe (52 per cent).

In the middle of the pack are Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey (46 per cent), B.C. Premier David Eby (46 per cent) and Smith.

The least-approved premiers are Quebec’s Francois Legault (36 per cent) and Ontario’s Doug Ford (34 per cent).

Jon Rowe, a research associate with Angus Reid, says despite Smith being near the bottom of approval ratings, she’s always had a consistent rating during her time as Alberta’s leader.

“It's been around at that 45 per cent level since then, and what's kind of changed is that the other premiers have had more of a little bit of a bump,” he said.

“So, she does look a little bit worse by comparison, but this is about where she's been since she took over.”

Assessments of Smith’s job is much higher within her own party.

She passed a November leadership review with 91.5 per cent approval by United Conservative Party members.

Despite praise from her party, however, there were rumblings that a province-wide summer tour of townhalls by Smith was designed to quell an unhappy base.

Health care and affordability remain top concerns

Lori Williams, associate professor of policy studies at Mount Royal University, says it’s a bit surprising that Smith’s poll numbers are not much lower than they are right now given the number of Albertans struggling with affordability or health-care access issues.

“A lot of people are waiting a long time to get an appointment with a specialist, or even having their own family doctor, all of those things are going to be concerns for everybody who's in the system,” she said.

“And with affordability, we know that oil prices have not been as high as were budgeted. We know that they're talking about possibly having a deficit that probably means we won't be getting the promised tax cut, the one that was promised before the last election.”

Williams went on to say that the Alberta is Calling campaign has successfully brought more people to the province, but that initiative is hurting the economy at the same time.

“That’s put an enormous strain on the services in even smaller municipalities, but especially in Calgary and Edmonton, that's affected housing affordability, it's affected the employment rate,” she said.

What sets Smith up for success, however, according to Williams, is her efforts to put Alberta’s interests first as she advocates against the federal government and against tariffs that could soon be imposed by the incoming Trump administration in the United States.

“I would say provincial premiers generally generate some support from advocating for their province against whether it be Ottawa or other provinces in Canada. It’s a time-honoured tradition, particularly in Alberta, it's been front and centre for Danielle Smith and is playing well with her base,” she said.