‘Historically low levels’: Support for Calgary mayor and councillors remains minimal, poll says

Jyoti Gondek speaks to the media after being sworn-in as the new mayor of Calgary in Calgary, Alta., Monday, Oct. 25, 2021. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh)

A new poll suggests Calgarians' views on both the mayor and city councillors remain decidedly negative.

The poll from ThinkHQ Public Affairs Inc., released on Wednesday, asked Calgarians to rate their ward councillor's performance since they were elected in October 2021.

Generally, the poll noted councillors received "modestly positive" ratings from constituents, with 42 per cent saying they approve of their councillor and 39 per cent saying they disapprove.

"This represents a nominal improvement in councillor ratings over the past year, up three points since our last survey in fall 2022," noted ThinkHQ in a news release.

ThinkHQ president Marc Henry says council's ratings are "pretty stubborn."

"They're sitting at pretty historically low levels," he noted.

A new poll suggests Calgarians' views on city council members remain decidedly negative.Henry says while councillors have seen a little increase in their constituent ratings, compared to previous councils, they are still underperforming.

GONDEK'S SUPPORT REMAINS 'QUITE SOFT'

The ThinkHQ poll also indicates Mayor Jyoti Gondek has struggled to gain significant ground with voters since being elected.

The poll asked Calgarians how they'd rate her performance since she was voted in.

According to the results, the mayor sits with a 36 per cent approval rating, largely unchanged over the last year.

The poll indicates her support is "quite soft" while opposition is "intense," saying just 10 per cent have strong support for Gondek, while 40 per cent strongly disapprove of her performance.

A new poll suggests Calgarians' views on the mayor remain decidedly negative.ThinkHQ also noted there seems to be a notable gender gap in Gondek's approval rating.

"Men offer far more disapproval of the mayor than women," Henry said.

"Her disproval tends to increase with age as well."

The poll proposes that Calgarians 55 and older have weaker and more negative ratings of the mayor than their younger counterparts.

"So the older you are, the more likely you are to disapprove of the mayor's performance since the 2021 election," Henry said.

THE TAKEAWAY

Overall, Henry says this is "not a report card you would want to put on the fridge."

"We’re nearing the mid-point of this council’s term, and their numbers remain chronically weak.”

Henry says some of the ratings can perhaps be explained by the historic turnover on council in the last election – a new mayor and a majority of new councillors.

"There’s bound to be a few missteps and hiccups as they learn the ropes," he added. "But it is at this stage you might expect to see some improvement – if you haven’t learned the job in 18 months, chances are you never will."

Henry notes that for most mayors, the first re-election campaign is the easiest, but Gondek could be the exception to that rule.  

"If she plans to run again and be successful, she’ll need to find a way to connect with constituents in a manner that has eluded her so far.

"Her prospects for re-election are fairly bleak," he finished.

The online survey from ThinkHQ, conducted between June 22 and 26, was released on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. The survey utilized a random stratified sample of panelists invited to complete the survey from ThinkHQ's panel partners, weighed to reflect gender, age and region of the Calgary-proper population according to Stats Canada. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of this size is +/- 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.