Ranked Ballot an Option for Toronto
Plurality familiar with the voting system, but majority either
not familiar or unsure
Toronto, March 16th
– In a random sampling of public opinion taken by The Forum Poll™ among 966
Toronto voters, (45%) say they are familiar with the ranked ballot system of
voting. (27%) say no, and (28%) are unsure.
Those most likely to
be familiar with ranked ballot include those aged 34 and below (48%), 35-44
(48%), male (51%), earning $20,000-$40,000 (54%), $80,000-$100,000 (53%),
$100,000-$250,000 (54%), with a post-graduate degree (59%), living in the
Former City of Toronto (56%), and supporting the NDP (53%).
Those least likely
to be familiar with ranked ballot include those earning $60,000-$80,000 (41%)
and with a college or university degree (36%).
Those familiar with it, support it
Those who responded
they were familiar with ranked ballot (n=427) were asked whether Toronto should
use the system, the plurality (47%) said yes. (36%) said no, with (17%) unsure.
Those most likely to
support a change to the ranked ballot system include those aged 34 or less
(58%), the most wealthy (54%), with a post-graduate degree (61%), and
supporting the NDP (60%).
Those most likely to
oppose a change to the ranked ballot system include those aged 55 and over
(55-64: 41%), (65+: 38%), the least wealthy (37%), earning $20,000-$40,000
(40%), the least educated (61%), supporting the PC party (57%).
“The ranked ballot system
is familiar to just under half of voters, and with the municipal election more than
a year and a half away, if Toronto Council decides to implement ranked ballots there
is still time to educate the public on this new system, if they put it in place
for 2018,” said Dr. Lorne Bozinoff, President of Forum Research.
Lorne Bozinoff,
Ph.D. is the president and founder of Forum Research. He can be reached at
lbozinoff@forumresearch.com or at (416) 960-9603.
