N.S. Grits least popular government in region

Stephen McNeil's Liberal government in Nova Scotia has the lowest satisfaction in the region with less than half, 45 per cent, of respondents in a new poll saying they are mostly or completely satisfied with the government.

This is, however, up from 42 per cent in August and 35 in May.

Prince Edward Island residents, meanwhile, are quite satisfied with their Progressive Conservative government.

According to the poll, part of Narrative Research's Atlantic Quarterly Survey, 77 per cent of P.E.I. residents cite satisfaction with premier Darren King's current government, the highest satisfaction level since Robert Ghiz's Liberals held a 77 per cent rating in 2008.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, 52 per cent, up from 47 per cent over the summer, express satisfaction with Dwight Ball's

Liberal government, and in New Brunswick, 53 per cent of residents, compared with 50 three months ago, indicate satisfaction with Blaine Higgs' PC government.

N.S.

In Nova Scotia, decided support for the provincial Liberals has reached its highest point this year at 42 per cent (up from 39 per cent in August and 31 per cent in May), while support for the PC Party has reached its lowest at 26 per cent (down from 28 in August and 33 in May). Twenty-one per cent said they prefer the NDP, up five points in August, while support for the Green Party dropped to nine per cent of the intended vote, compared to 15 per cent three months ago.

Leader preference in Nova Scotia is as follows: Stephen McNeil (Liberal) 28 per cent, Tim Houston (PC) 20 per cent, Gary Burrill (NDP) 14 per cent, Thomas Trappenberg (Green Party) 12 per cent. Twenty-three per cent of voters were undecided, while 6 per cent said they prefer none of the leaders.

P.E.I.

Despite overwhelming satisfaction with the government in P.E.I., decided voter support has shifted slightly downward with the PC party losing seven per cent support since the summer (38 per cent, down from 45 per cent). The Green Party is also down eight per cent, (29 per cent down from 37 per cent). The Liberals, however, have jumped 10 per cent since August from 16 per cent to 26 per cent, although the NDP also enjoyed an increase of five percentage points to six per cent support.

Leader preference in P.E.I. is as follows: Dennis King (PC) 36 per cent, Peter Bevan-Baker (Green Party) 30 per cent, newly-appointed Liberal leader Sonny Gallant, 11 per cent, and NDP leader Joe Byrne four per cent. Fifteen per cent were undecided, and four per cent said they prefer none of the leaders.

N.L.

Decided voting intentions in Newfoundland and Labrador have been fairly consistent since August, with the Liberal Party maintaining 42 per cent of the vote. Also relatively unchanged, 33 per cent said they prefer the Progressive Conservative Party. Support for the New Democratic Party stands at 24 per cent, mostly unchanged since August but the party saw a significant jump following the May election when support was at seven per cent.

Leader preference in Newfoundland and Labrador is as follows: Dwight Ball (Liberal) 36 per cent, Ches Crosbie (PC) 23 per cent, Alison Coffin (NDP) 19 per cent. Eleven per cent of respondents were undecided while 10 per cent said they support none of the leaders.

N.B.

In New Brunswick, 37 per cent of decided voters said they would vote for the governing Progressive Conservatives, consistent with August, while 31 said they would vote Liberal, compared to 29 per cent in August. Twentyone per cent said they would vote Green, compared with 18 per cent in the summer, while seven per cent said they would vote NDP, compared with three per cent.

Leader preference in New Brunswick is as follows: Blaine Higgs (PC) 27 per cent, new Liberal leader Kevin Vickers 21 per cent, David Coon (Green) 17 per cent, Kris Austin (People's Alliance of New Brunswick) seven per cent, and interim NDP leader MacKenzie Thomason four per cent. Eighteen per cent of voters were undecided, and 6 per cent said they prefer none of the leaders.

These results are part of Narrative Research's Atlantic Quarterly and are based on an independent telephone survey of 3,000 adult Atlantic Canadians throughout November, with overall results for each province accurate to within ± 3.5 percentage points, 95 out of 100 times.