As the new British Columbia legislative session gets underway tomorrow with a new Speech from the Throne, a new Pallas Data poll finds that the NDP led by Premier David Eby has an eight-point lead over the opposition Conservatives.
Among decided and leaning voters, The NDP has 49% (+4% since the general election), while the BC Conservatives, led by John Rustad, have 41% (-2%). The Greens, with interim leader Jeremy Valeriote at the helm, are at 8% (no change).
"Premier Eby and the NDP are in a strong position since the election as the legislative session begins tomorrow," said Dr. Joseph Angolano, founder and CEO of Pallas Data. "British Columbians are mostly on board with Eby’s response to the U.S. tariffs and trust him the most on handling the trade issue."
The NDP has a twenty-two-point lead over the Conservatives in Metro Vancouver and is five points ahead on Vancouver Island.
British Columbians Are Very Concerned About the U.S. Tariffs
The survey also asked respondents if they agreed that the U.S. tariffs posed a massive threat to the British Columbia economy and could put the province into a recession.
The number of respondents who are concerned about the economic impacts of the tariffs outnumbers those who are not concerned by a factor of two to one.
36% strongly agreed, with another 24% saying they somewhat agree (60% in total agree at some level).
By comparison, 16% strongly disagreed, and 13% somewhat disagreed (a total of 29%).
British Columbians Prefer Eby’s Approach To Tariffs
Respondents were asked which response to the tariffs they preferred: either having British Columbia fully cooperate with the Trump administration and address their concerns about drugs and border security or having the province respond with retaliatory tariffs and removing American liquor from store shelves.
The first option is BC Conservative leader John Rustad has suggested, while the second is what David Eby said the province would do the day the tariffs were announced.
The question only had respondents listen to each option and did not attribute either option to Eby or Rustad.
55% said that British Columbia should respond with retaliatory tariffs and remove American liquor from store shelves—and 30% preferred cooperation with the Trump administration.
British Columbians are split on this along partisan lines. 76% of NDP voters favoured retaliatory tariffs, while only 20% of Conservative voters thought retaliatory tariffs were best. Conversely, 65% of Conservatives opted for full cooperation with the United States, while only 7% thought working with the Trump administration was best.
Eby Most Trusted To Respond To Tariffs
Finally, 43% of respondents said they trust David Eby the most to respond to the U.S. tariffs. 34% said that they trusted John Rustad the most, with 3% saying that they trusted Jeremy Valeriote. 15% said that they were not sure.
