As wildfires ravage the country from coast to coast, the crises in communities are manifold. Emergency responses must be marshalled. Firefighting efforts need to be coordinated. Residents forced from their homes need shelter. Most of these responsibilities rest on the shoulders of provincial governments where the fires are burning. Ultimately, the buck stops with the premier.
Against this backdrop, provincial leaders are heading into what climate scientists predict will be a long, hot summer with a general reserve of goodwill from their respective electorate. There are, however, some notable exceptions.
The latest data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute tracking approval of provincial premiers shows while most garner a positive assessment from at least 40 per cent of their provincial populations, Ontario’s Doug Ford, New Brunswick’s Blaine Higgs and Manitoba’s Heather Stefanson are struggling.
Ford enjoys the luxury of time even as he endures widespread disapproval. The PC government’s election victory last June has the party in a majority position for at least three more years. Low approval has become a consistent occurrence for Ford, both before and after his party’s re-election. This is the third quarter in a row where only one-third (33%) of Ontarians approve of the premier.
The political risk is most acute for Stefanson, facing re-election this fall. She currently earns the approval of just one-in-four Manitobans (25%). In New Brunswick, three-in-ten (28%) approve of their premier, and though an election looms in 2024, Higgs and the PC government have more time to correct course.
At the top of heap remain two persistent faces: Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe (57%) and Nova Scotia’s Tim Houston (55%), both who enjoy approval from a majority of constituents. The middle of the pack is crowded and features two relative newcomers – David Eby in B.C. (45%) and Danielle Smith (45%) in Alberta, who received a renewed mandate last month – as well as more seasoned leaders in Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.
In the case of the latter two, assessments have dropped in recent months. Quebec Premier François Legault’s approval (48%) dips below a majority level as the final protocols of the controversial Bill 96 are enacted. Meanwhile, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Andrew Furey’s approval (47%) tumbles as his government faces economic headwinds with the delay of the Bay du Nord offshore oil project.
