Presented in partnership with Narrative Research
Halifax NS – With the upcoming municipal election in the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) to be held on October 19, 2024, the Halifax Chamber of Commerce commissioned an online poll with residents of the municipality from September 17th to 19th. The poll was conducted by Narrative Research. The purpose of this poll was to identify which candidate residents would prefer as mayor, as well as which issues are most important to those living in HRM.
Three top candidates continue to emerge as the municipal election approaches, with four key themes emerging as the top issues (see below).The Halifax Chamber of Commerce will be hosting an event titled “Meet Your Mayoral Candidates” on Thursday, September 26 from 10:00AM – 12:00PM at the Westin Nova Scotian and plans to commission an additional poll from Narrative Research closer to the election date.
Poll results regarding candidates
Latest results indicate that Andy Filmore continues to lead the polls for Mayor of Halifax with 29% of respondents indicating their preference for Andy (up 6 points from the previous poll conducted by Narrative Research in August 2024).
Waye Mason (13%; up 4 points) has more support in Halifax compared with other parts of HRM, while Pam Lovelace (12%; up 8 points)—who had the biggest bump between the two polls in August and September—has her highest support outside of the urban core communities.
Jim Hoskins (3%), who was not listed in the August poll (due to registration date), was the preferred candidate for three percent of HRM residents. All other candidates were chosen by 1% or fewer residents.
Poll results regarding election issues
When asked to select their top three issues, finding housing for the unhoused continued to be a top priority for many residents (59%); however, that number has fallen 11 points compared to the August results.
A large number of residents have indicated that transportation is a growing concern in the Municipality. This includes issues like creating better public transit for all of HRM (51%; up 7 points), improving conditions of roads (34%; down 2 points), better parking options downtown (16%; up 4 points), increasing pedestrian paths/walkways and safety (11%; up 3 points), increasing bike routes and bike safety (5%), or address traffic/road congestions/infrastructure (2%).
Additionally, a third of residents consider reduction of municipal taxes to be a key issue (32%; no change).
Poll demographics
As the election approaches, residents are becoming more decisive in their preference for mayor. Of note, residents who are unsure of who they would prefer as mayor now make up just over one-third (37%; down 15 points). Women are twice as likely as men to be unsure of their preferred mayoral candidate (48% vs. 25%). Those living in the communities of Dartmouth, Bedford and Sackville are more likely to be undecided at this point, compared with residents in other parts of HRM.
Women are more likely to believe that finding housing for the unhoused, better public transit and restrictions on development rules are important issues, while men are more likely to indicate that reducing taxes, easing development rules, and reducing red tape are important to them.
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Representing 1,950 businesses and over 94,000 members, the Halifax Chamber of Commerce is committed to advocating for the conditions in the economy that enhance our members’ prosperity. www.halifaxchamber.com
For more information:
EMILY BEDNARZ
Communications Specialist, Halifax Chamber of Commerce
emily@halifaxchamber.com
902-481-1238