Stewart and Sim Are Frontrunners in Vancouver Mayoral Election

More than a third of likely voters believe housing is the most important issue facing the city right now.

Vancouver, BC [September 8, 2022] – Four mayoral candidates are in double-digits as voters in Vancouver ponder their choices in next month’s election, a new Research Co. poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative sample, 35% of decided voters in the City of Vancouver would support incumbent Kennedy Stewart of Forward Vancouver, while 30% would cast their ballot for Ken Sim of A Better City (ABC).

Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver is in third place with 17 per cent, followed by Mark Marissen of Progress Vancouver with 13% and Fred Harding of the Non-Partisan Association (NPA) with 4%.

More than a third of likely voters in Vancouver (35%) say housing is the most important issue facing the city, followed by drug overdoses (14%), crime (9%), poverty (also 9%) and property taxes (also 9%).

“Concerns about housing are particularly high among women (42%) and likely voters aged 35-to-54 (39%) in the City of Vancouver,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “Drug overdoses are a more prevalent topic among likely voters who reside Downtown (19%) than among their counterparts who live on the West Side (13%) or the East Side (11%).”

Two thirds of likely voters in the City of Vancouver (67%) have followed the municipal electoral campaign “very closely” or “moderately closely.”

Over the past two months, a majority of likely voters in the City of Vancouver (52%) have seen, read or heard media stories where mayoral or council candidates discussed their position on issues. Almost three-in-ten (29%) have visited the website of a mayoral or council candidate.

While 16% of likely voters in the City of Vancouver have interacted with a mayoral or council candidate on social media (such as following on Twitter or liking on Facebook), the proportion rises to 25% among those aged 18-to-34.

Just over two thirds of likely voters in Vancouver (68%) support the use of “SOGI-Inclusive Education”, which raises awareness of and welcomes students of all sexual orientations, gender identities and family structures.

In national survey conducted by Research Co. in July 2019, 62% of Canadians supported the use of “SOGI-Inclusive Education” in their province.

Methodology:

Results are based on an online survey conducted from September 3 to September 5, 2022, among a representative sample of 400 municipal likely voters in the City of Vancouver. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in the City of Vancouver. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 4.9 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.

Find our data tables here and download the press release here. 

For more information on this poll, please contact:

Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.

778.929.0490

[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca