Once associated closely with sound economic management – even by non-Conservative voters – Stephen Harper seems to have lost his golden touch this time around.
In an online poll conducted by Insights West for Business in Vancouver, 51% of B.C. respondents rated the Conservatives’ handling of Canada’s economy as “bad” or “very bad” compared with the 41% who rated it “good” or “very good.”
When respondents were asked which leader they would pick to be their boss, NDP leader Thomas Mulcair was the top choice at 27%, followed by Liberal leader Justin Trudeau (20%) and Stephen Harper (20%). Elizabeth May came in fourth at 14%.
The poll results reveal just how close this race has become between the ruling Conservatives, ascendant NDP and still-in-there Liberals, said Mario Canseco, vice-president of public affairs for Insights West.
“In other elections it’s always been Conservative, and then you tend to vote for the other parties based on other issues or on ideology. But on this particular issue, they’re just too close. There’s nobody who can say they have the upper hand on managing the economy.”
Canseco said he was surprised by how many British Columbians (72%) rated energy and pipelines when asked to pick their top economic issue.
“There are a lot of people highly engaged in this conversation, but [the politicians] don’t talk a lot about energy and pipelines,” he said.
Respondents were also clearly divided along gender lines, especially on the question of which leader they would like to see as their boss: just 15% of women picked Harper compared with 25% of men. Meanwhile, 29% of women chose Mulcair.
The divide was also apparent when respondents were asked to rate how well the Conservatives have managed the economy: 35% of women said the current government has done a good job compared with 49% of men. 
“When you have so few women feeling you would be the best boss of the company, that shows that there’s a difficulty connecting with the demographic,” Canseco said.
Canseco noted that the Conservatives have become adept at turning Canada's electoral system to their advantage.
"It’s a strategy that they’ve mastered: all we need is to get between 35% and 40%," he said.
"You can sustain it because more men are likely to vote for you, it’s all about mass. You’re not appealing to everybody – you just need to talk to these people here."
Insights West's online poll was conducted between September 18 and 21 among 1,003 adult British Columbians. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
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