A new poll shows support for Calgary’s mayor and city council continues to slide just over the halfway mark of their four-year term.
According to the latest survey from ThinkHQ, approval of Mayor Jyoti Gondek sits at 30 per cent compared to 61 per cent disapproval in December.
Gondek’s approval rating declined six per cent compared to the last ThinkHQ poll in June.
Forty three per cent of voters say they “strongly disapprove” of the mayor, compared to only seven per cent reporting “strong” approval.
“Mayor Gondek, for her part, did not get off to a great start. Her high-water mark for this term was 38 per cent approval, and she’s down eight-points since then,” ThinkHQ Public Affairs president Marc Henry said in his commentary. “Her current report card comes on the heels of a 7.8 per cent residential tax increase.”
According to Henry, the poll was two-thirds complete when the mayor withdrew from attending the annual Menorah lighting ceremony at city hall.
“So there’s a fairly good likelihood her approval is actually lower than this now,” Henry added.
The poll noted Gondek’s approval tends to decline with age, with the most negative assessments coming from those 55 and older.
While disapproval for the mayor is “more concentrated in established communities,” and in households earning more than $125,000 per year.
Assessments of the mayor’s performance also tend to be harsher from men than women, the poll said.
Henry said Gondek is “running out of time” if she plans to run for re-election.
“The next municipal campaign isn’t until October 2025,” Henry said. “But 30 per cent approval is not something that can be rehabilitated quickly, particularly when over four-in-ten voters strongly dislike your performance.”
City council as a whole scored even lower than the mayor, with just 28 per cent of respondents approving their performance so far compared to 60 per cent who disapprove.
Henry noted negative ratings “tend to be more intense” than positive ones.
The poll also asked Calgarians to rate their ward councillor’s performance since they were elected in 2021.
37 per cent said they approved of their individual councillor’s performance, down six per cent since June, compared to 41 per cent who said they disapprove.
The survey suggested the results represent an “all-time low” in councillor ratings in Calgary since public opinion polling began in the city.
According to the polling, the highest ratings for their individual councillors came from residents in new and suburban communities, while those people who live in established communities offered “the harshest” evaluations.
“There are some city councillors in a very similar position to the mayor, mostly for taking the same positions as the mayor,” Henry said. “It’s not just the rising dissatisfaction with council’s performance, but the growing intensity of that dissatisfaction that tends to drive voters to the polls when the time comes.”
When asked about the falling approval ratings for herself and city council, Gondek said that polling reflects public frustration “with everything that’s going on in the world.”
“The people that get targeted are those of us who serve in an elected capacity,” Gondek told reporters. “We take the results of those polls very seriously in terms of how is the public feeling and we take action to respond.”
That frustration includes the state of housing and public safety, Gondek said.
Ward 10 Coun. Andre Chabot said he tries to be as transparent and open with the residents he represents, with direct communication.
“I also try and find an equilibrium on all issues. I don’t try and be one-sided on any of my decisions. I try to find some consensus or some neutral ground,” Chabot said. “If that results in my having better numbers then maybe others should consider emulating what I do… I’m not suggesting that I’m the best but typically I’ve scored fairly high in those polls.”
Individual ward results were not released as part of the ThinkHQ polling.
Henry noted the year leading up to the election is likely to be “bumpy” for council, with a contentious decision on the city’s base residential zoning and a 5.5 per cent property tax increase already budgeted for 2025.
“If they don’t find the path to turning these numbers around, a good portion of council may not be returning in 671 days,” Henry said.
The online poll surveyed 1,138 voting aged Calgarians across all city quadrants between Dec. 5 and 11.
ThinkHQ said the margin of error for the poll is +/- 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.