Winnipeg – Manitobans are typically quite confident about the economic prospects of their own communities, but they are also quite bullish about the country’s economic future, a Jory Capital-sponsored survey of 1,002 Manitobans conducted exclusively for the Winnipeg Free Press by Probe Research Inc. finds.

In addition to asking Manitobans to express the level of confidence they have in the economic outlook of their home communities, for the first time Probe Research asked Manitobans to assess Canada’s economic future. Fully eight-in-ten Manitobans (80%) have a positive outlook about Canada’s prospects, with 27 percent of those surveyed being very optimistic about the country’s economic future. Only fifteen percent of those surveyed take a negative view of the national economy (including 4% who are very pessimistic), while four percent were undecided.

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Labels: economic confidence, Jory Capital, Manitoba economy, Probe Research

Brandon – Both seats in the City of Brandon could be battlegrounds in the upcoming provincial election, as the provincial New Democratic Party and Progressive Conservative Party are locked in a tight two-way race in support among Brandon residents, a Probe Research Inc. survey conducted for the Brandon Sun reveals.

Probe’s survey of 401 Brandon adults shows the NDP and PCs are statistically tied, with 40 percent of Brandon citizens indicating they would cast ballots for Premier Greg Selinger’s NDP in a hypothetical provincial election and the Hugh McFadyen-led Progressive Conservatives currently on 37 percent support from residents of the Wheat City. Jon Gerrard’s Manitoba Liberal Party, sits well back at 16 percent support, with six percent of voters indicating they would support a candidate from parties not currently represented in the Legislature.

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Labels: Brandon politics, Manitoba Liberal Party, NDP, Probe Research, Progressive Conservative Party

Brandon – Housing is the main issue on the minds of Brandon residents now considering who to vote for in the upcoming civic election, according to a Probe Research survey conducted exclusively for the Brandon Sun.

As candidates for mayor and city council were campaigning for their votes, Probe asked Brandon residents to identify which issues they consider to be the most important for civic decision-makers to address.

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Labels: 2010 municipal election, Brandon issues, Brandon politics, Probe Research

Winnipeg – Residents of Winnipeg want their next city council use municipal tax dollars to lure corporate head offices to Manitoba and stimulate local manufacturing, while “bricks-and-mortar” investments such as refurbishing downtown buildings and expanding the Winnipeg Convention Centre fall further down citizens’ list of priorities.

A Jory Capital-Probe Research Inc. survey of 600 Winnipeg adults conducted exclusively for the Winnipeg Free Press reveals that one-half of the city’s adult citizens believes investing tax dollars to encourage companies to relocate their head offices to Manitoba’s capital city should be a “top” or “high” priority for the next council (50%, including 14% who say this is a “top priority” for the next council).

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Labels: 2010 municipal election, City of Winnipeg, Jory Capital, Probe Research, Winnipeg issues

Winnipeg – Federal Conservatives and Liberals in Manitoba have reason to cheer while New Democrats and Greens might be licking their wounds after a new Probe Research Inc. poll for the Winnipeg Free Press shows the Conservatives and Liberals have recovered from a slump in voter support in the Keystone Province.

The governing Conservatives continue to enjoy a large lead over their rivals in Manitoba, with nearly one-half of voters (47%) now indicating they would cast ballots for Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s party. As the graph on the following page shows, Conservative support has increased by three percentage points in the past three months (from 44% in June to 47%). Meanwhile, Michael Ignatieff’s Liberals have leapfrogged the NDP into second place, climbing to 25 percent support in Manitoba (up from 21% in June).

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Labels: Conservative Party, federal politics, Green Party, Liberal Party, Manitoba politics, NDP, Probe Research

Winnipeg – After witnessing the devastation caused by a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico this past summer, a significant proportion of Canadians now feel this country should no longer allow companies to drill for oil in deep ocean waters off Canada’s coasts, a national survey of 2,000 Canadians conducted by Probe Research Inc. reveals.

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Winnipeg – Exactly 12 months out from Manitoba’s first-ever fixed-date provincial election, the race between the province’s two major political parties continues to be tight, a new poll conducted exclusively for the Winnipeg Free Press by Probe Research Inc. reveals.

For the second straight quarter, the governing New Democratic Party and the opposition Progressive Conservatives remain statistically tied, with the PCs now sitting at 42 percent (up slightly from 40% in June) while the NDP now have the support of 40 percent of Manitoba’s decided voters (down slightly from 41% in June). As the graph on the following page illustrates, the PCs are ahead of the NDP for the first time since December 2008 – however, their lead is within the poll’s margin of error of +/- 3.1 percent.

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Labels: Greg Selinger, Hugh McFadyen, Jon Gerrard, Manitoba Liberal Party, Manitoba politics, NDP, Probe Research, Progressive Conservative Party

Winnipeg – Winnipeg voters could be in for one of the tightest races for the mayor’s chair in the city’s history as incumbent mayor Sam Katz and challenger Judy Wasylycia-Leis enter October statistically tied in support, a new Probe Research Inc. survey conducted exclusively for the Winnipeg Free Press reveals...

Probe Research asked 439 Winnipeg residents who said that they intend to vote in this fall’s mayoral election to specify which candidate they will support on October 27th. One-half (50%) of these intended voters reported that they would cast their ballots for former NDP MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis, while almost as many (47%) reported that they intended to vote for incumbent mayor Sam Katz. Lower profile candidates Brad Gross (2%) and Rav Gill (1%) trailed far behind.

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Labels: 2010 municipal election, Brad Gross, City of Winnipeg, Judy Wasylycia-Leis, Probe Research, Rav Gill, Sam Katz