Penny-pinching Etobicoke city councillor Rob Ford is leading all other candidates in the race to become Toronto's next mayor, but many voters are still undecided, according to a new poll.
Full results from the Nanos Research poll, conducted for CTV, the Globe and Mail and CP24, will be published Monday morning.
It shows that Ford has the support of nearly 18 per cent of voters, which is almost two percentage points ahead of his nearest rival, former provincial cabinet minister George Smitherman.
Four months ahead of the October 25 civic election, Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone is in third place, with slightly more than 10 per cent support.
The poll ranks support for the candidates as follows:
- Rob Ford at 17.8 per cent
- Ex-deputy premier George Smitherman at 15.9 per cent
- Deputy mayor Joe Pantalone at 10.1 per cent
- Former Liberal insider Rocco Rossi at 9 per cent
- Business leader Sarah Thomson at 5.8 per cent
- Coun. Giorgio Mammoliti at 2.5 per cent
While respondents were asked to choose from a list of the top six candidates, 38.9 per cent of those polled said they were undecided.
The poll also suggests a divide between the central residents of Toronto and those living in the surrounding boroughs of Etobicoke, North York and Scarborough.
For example, in his home turf of Etobicoke, Ford leads Smitherman by more than 13 percentage points. Ford also enjoys a considerable lead on Smitherman in North York and Scarborough.
Meanwhile, Smitherman leads all candidates with 22 per cent of support in the region defined as the old city of Toronto. By comparison, Ford has 12.9 per cent.
Ford's supporters are also more likely to be male and over the age of 60.
The poll was a random telephone survey of 1,000 voters and can be considered accurate within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The poll was conducted from June 7-11.
