Efeso Collins leads in latest poll
The see-sawing of poll winners for preferred Auckland mayor continues — with Efeso Collins on top among decided voters in the latest poll.
Only two weeks out from the final day of voting in the Auckland local election, the poll shows Collins ahead of fellow front-runner Wayne Brown among voters who know who they will vote for in the tight race.
But still, those who listed themselves as “unsure” received the greatest response; a third of responders.
The poll, released today, was commissioned by Talbot Mills for the Collins campaign. It shows Collins at 27 per cent and Brown at 25 per cent when “unsures” are excluded.
Including “unsures” (34 per cent of those asked), Collins was at 19 per cent and Brown on 17 per cent.
“This poll is very tight, as we’ve always said, and I will be working around the clock in the last two weeks to turn out the vote,” Collins said.
The poll uses four weeks of rolling data, with a total of 1230 voters polled (including “unsures”) and 740 voters polled once “unsures” are removed. It includes only one week of polling with Viv Beck out of the race.
“As I’ve knocked on doors around the city and met people, I’ve heard that people want a positive mayor with a positive vision for Auckland,” Collins said.
“I’m heartened by what I’m hearing, and I’ll keep rolling up my sleeves to make sure Aucklanders get a mayor they can be proud of.”
The last Talbot Mills poll results for the week ending September 15, were released on Wednesday night, which showed that businessman Brown might have had his nose in front.
“Clearly, the wheels have fallen off their campaign if they can only release four-week-old poll results,” said a Brown campaign spokesperson.
“Full transparency would be releasing numbers from this week without obfuscation, but they would show the momentum in Wayne Brown’s campaign.
“Efeso won’t front up to Aucklanders — whether it’s his data, the billion-dollar CRL cost overrun, or pulling out of six scheduled events this week.”
The latest Ratepayers’ AllianceCuria poll shows momentum building for Brown, while support for Collins, endorsed by the Labour and Green parties, is stuck in the mid-20s.
The Ratepayers’ Alliance-Curia poll shows Brown has jumped nine points in six weeks to 28 per cent, while Collins rose four points to 26 per cent.
In the first poll since restaurateur Leo Molloy withdrew last month, it shows Beck, who also withdrew during the period of polling, on 10 per cent, Craig Lord on 8 per cent, Ted Johnston on 4 per cent, Gary Brown on 3 per cent and 16 other candidates between 0 and 2 per cent.
Postal voting has started and closes at midday on October 8.