Monday, February 12, 2007

Calling Lorne Mayencourt! Pollsters phoning Vancouver Centre voters in effort to see if MLA Mayencourt can be the next Conservative MP

Controversial BC Liberal MLA Lorne Mayencourt may be the "safe" choice for federal Conservatives as their candidate for Vancouver Centre Member of Parliament to take on Liberal Hedy Fry.

There have been one or possibly two polling efforts undertaken in recent weeks in Vancouver Centre to gauge Mayencourt's support for a possible candidacy. Polling was continuing as of February 1 and some was done before that.

The poll asks a number of questions that help identify Mayencourt as the author of the "Safe Streets Act" - the private members bill that banned "aggressive panhandling" and squeegeeing cars at intersections and the "Safe Schools Act" as well.

Other questions include:

"What is your impression of the following politicians: favourable or unfavourable; somewhat or very?

Stephen Harper


Jack Layton


Stephane Dion



Gordon Campbell


Carole James

Hedy Fry


Svend Robinson



What party did you vote for in the last federal election?


What party did you vote for in the last provincial election?

Who do you intend to vote for in the upcoming federal election?


According to one alert reader the company involved is NRG Research, a company formerly known as Nordic Research which merged with Western Opinion Research.

Western Opinion Research was the pollster of record for Gordon Campbell's BC Liberal Party.

NRG Research Senior Vice-President Adam Di Paula told me by email today that:

"Company policy is that we can’t discuss who are clients are or what they may be polling on—unless of course they release that on their own accord."

But it's possible that there are two polls. The question is - who wants to know?

Obviously either the Conservative Party or Lorne Mayencourt, potential candidate - or both.


4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Voters in Vancouver are smarter than to elect an MP who won his last election by 11 ballots.

It would be suicide for Lorne Mayencourt to run against Hedy Fry -- how does he plan to distance himself from the right-wingers running the Conservative Party? His party voted en masse to remove a Charter right from gay and lesbian Canadians. No amount of handshaking can change that fact. My money is on Fry.

Anonymous said...

I say go for it Lorne. Do it. You'll love Ottawa. Best idea in the world. Best idea ever. Super duper idea. Lorne for the 'new' gov of canada...yay!! Maybe you could sit near to Peter. Oooo that would be sooo nice. Make faces at that bit** dog Belinda (sniff)

I'd vote for him, I would, if I was in his riding, I would.

Anonymous said...

For a guy who won the provincial election by 6 votes, he would be an idiot to run for the federal conservatives. Being an MLA has been a great gig for the Lornemeister, however he doesn't have a snow ball's chance in hell of winning the Federal race against Hedy Fry.

Hedy owns the riding and she has crushed the opposition in past elections. In fact the conservatives have finished a distant third in the previous races. The riding isn't going to be shmoozed by the Lornemeister. If he moves and loses, he's finished in politics.

Lorne better stick to provincial politics or he'll be back working in the non profit sector for chump change real soon.

Budd Campbell said...

What do polls of this type cost, that is, an opinion survey for one electoral district? To produce even roughly valid results, I would think that about 400 or more respondents would be needed, just based on what we see in national and provincial level polling.

For the NDP, a company called StratCom offers to do riding level polls, but I don't know what their fees are.