[LINK] "Rob Ford scores 60 per cent approval rating: poll"

[rfmcdonald]

Mayor Rob Ford is popular, it's worth confirming.

Rob Ford enjoys a 60-per-cent approval rating, according to the first public poll released since he took office Dec. 1.

However, Toronto-based Forum Research, Inc. found that urban and suburban Torontonians remain deeply divided about Mr. Ford: His approval rating was highest in Scarborough (71 per cent) and North York (65 per cent) and lowest in the old cities of Toronto and East York (46 per cent.)

“That puts him higher than his vote, so somehow he’s got the approval of some of his opponents' supporters, which I think is quite a task, especially given how polarizing the election was,” said Lorne Bozinoff, the president of Forum Research.

Mr. Ford captured 47 per cent of the vote in the Oct. 25 election.

The telephone survey of 1,012 Torontonians, which was conducted Feb. 25 and 26, found widespread support for several of the mayor’s pet issues.

Some 72 per cent approve of Mr. Ford’s desire to ban strikes at the TTC; 61 per cent approve of his plan to pay for a Sheppard subway extension with private financing; and 54 per cent approve of privatizing garbage collection for parts of the city.

Mr. Ford has encountered little effective opposition in his first three months as mayor. As promised, he scrapped the $60 vehicle registration fee, reduced councillors’ office budgets and banned free food from council meetings.

He also shepherded a budget with a tax freeze through city council.

The poll was conducted before Toronto’s auditor-general released a pair of damning audits Monday about overspending and sloppy procurement at the Toronto Community Housing Corporation – a scandal that is expected to boost the popularity of Mr. Ford, a long-time critic of TCHC management.

But opponents say Mr. Ford faces a tough road in 2012 as he tries to balance a budget with a projected shortfall of $774-million.

Mr. Bozinoff also warned of pitfalls ahead for Mr. Ford. The poll showed his support is soft among voters aged 18-34, only 49 per cent of whom approve of the job he’s doing.

“He skews highly toward older voters,” Mr. Bozinoff said. “He’s not got the younger voters on board.”