By Rachel Emmanuel/iPolitics
Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is still the most popular in Ontario — but its comfortable lead has shrunk since more pandemic measures were announced, according to a new poll from Mainstreet Research.
In a survey conducted on Jan. 6 and 7 using automated telephone interviews, 1,246 adults living in Ontario were asked how they'd vote if the provincial election were held today.
Ontario voters go to the polls on June 2.
<a href="https://ipolitics.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Ontario-iPoliticsCOVID-19January2022.pdf">Among decided and leaning voters</a>, 31 per cent chose Ford’s PC party, followed by 28 per cent who chose the Ontario Liberals, led by Steven Del Duca.
Another 27 per cent favoured Andrea Horwath’s NDP. Nine per cent picked another party, and six per cent chose the Greens.
<img class="alignleft wp-image-400529 " src="https://www.qpbriefing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/poll.jpg" alt="" width="817" height="540" srcset="https://old.qpbriefing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/poll.jpg 776w, https://old.qpbriefing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/poll-405x268.jpg 405w, https://old.qpbriefing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/poll-768x508.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 817px) 100vw, 817px" />
Mainstreet polling last month also gave the PCs 31 per cent of the vote — but the NDP trailed at a distant 23 per cent, while the Liberals got 21 per cent.
"These numbers are an indication of the dissatisfaction with the Ford government's handling of the Omicron variant," Mainstreet Research vice-president Joseph Angolano told iPolitics.
On Jan. 3, Ford responded to the contagious and rapidly spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19 by shutting down restaurants, gyms and movie theatres, and delaying the reopening of schools.
The NDP and Liberal gains weren't big, but support for the PCs is down, Angolano said.
"It looks like the Conservative vote has shaken loose, and doesn't know where to go right now."
This June, the PCs must also contend with some new conservative parties, including two that were formed by former PC members.
The Ontario First Party (OFP) was started by MPP Randy Hillier, who was booted from Ford’s caucus in 2019, and has since openly criticized Ford’s lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He's also been charged by police for organizing anti-lockdown rallies.
People’s Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier has endorsed the OFP.
New Blue is a socially conservative party started by Jim and Belinda Karahalios. Belinda, a New Blue MPP, was removed from the PC caucus in July 2020 for voting against a bill that would have allowed the government to prolong emergency powers for up to two years without consulting the legislature.
There’s also the Ontario Party, which has been registered since 2018, and is now being led by Derek Sloan, a former Conservative MP who sat as an independent after he was also booted from the Tory caucus.
The new parties could cause trouble for the PCs in seats where they're in close competition with another party, Angolano said.
The margin of error for Mainstreet's poll is plus or minus 2.7 per cent at the 95 per cent confidence level.
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PCs’ lead in Ontario shrinks after latest lockdown: poll

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