When it comes to which political party they think would best deal with the many issues facing Ontario during the 2018 election, voters at least know who they don’t trust: the Liberals.
In an Ipsos poll conducted exclusively for Global News, respondents were asked which party would best navigate the province’s wide range of issues from healthcare to the economy.
The top election issue on the minds of the Ontario people is healthcare , which 35 per cent of respondents said they’d trust Andrea Horwath and the NDP to best deal with.
Doug Ford and the Conservatives came out on top for the next few categories, with a majority of respondents saying they’d trust the Tories to best deal with “economy and jobs” (40 per cent), “lower taxes” (55 per cent), “lower energy costs” (44 per cent) and “debt repayment and a balanced budget” (58 per cent).
Categories are listed in order of importance to Ontarians, as determined by the poll.
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Horwath’s NDPs also nabbed categories like “social assistance programs” and “education funding,” while Ford’s Tories got the top spot for issues on marijuana and “crime and public safety.”
The poll shows a vote of non-confidence in Kathleen Wynne and the Liberals; there wasn’t a single issue in which voters thought they would be the best group to tackle the problem.
There were also some categories (including “Integrity in government and its leaders” and “Preventing climate change”) where more respondents said either they trusted another party, or that all parties were the same.
Pollster Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, said that’s problematic for the Liberals heading into the June election.
“They don’t lead on any of the issues that voters are focussed on,” Bricker told Global News.
“Also, on the progressive issues that they have championed, they are now trailing the NDP.”
The poll also found that six in ten Ontarians (61%) hold an optimistic view of the economy, compared to nearly four in ten (39%) who have a pessimistic outlook.
However, more Liberals have an optimistic outlook, Bricker clarified.
“Often one wonders what the difference between and NDP and a Liberal voter is, since the demographic profile of supporters is usually quite similar,” he said. “This provides an answer to that question: outlook on the economy. If you think the future looks bright, you’re much more likely to support the Liberals. If not, you’re looking more at the NDP.”
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