A new poll suggests Green Party Coun. Adriane Carr has extended her lead among a long list of prospective candidates who could be vying for Vancouver's top job in the next municipal election.

According to Research Co., 35 per cent of Vancouverites think Carr would be a "good choice" for mayor. That number is up nine points from 26 per cent when the polling company asked residents the same question in April.

Research Co. president Mario Canseco said name recognition is a big part of Carr's success so far, and has left other potential candidates with some catching up to do before Oct. 20.

"She has the lowest number of residents who say they don't know who she is and this isn't something that we see with some of the other contenders," Canseco said.

"Part of the exercise for some of these candidates if they decide to follow through and launch campaigns, is going to be to talk about specific policies and to try to become better known."

Canseco said the other component of Carr's popularity has been her ability to connect with voters over the age of 55, which he said is "unheard of" for the Greens, who tend to appeal to a younger crowd.

"That's definitely something that we haven't seen before for a Green candidate," he said.

The poll puts Carr 16 points ahead of the current Vision Vancouver Coun. Raymond Louie, who is currently polling in second place with 19 per cent.

Carr and Louie are among five politicians who could be contenders for the city's top job who scored double digits in Research Co.'s poll. Independent Jean Swanson reached 17 per cent, while Non-Partisan Association Coun. Hector Bremner and NDP MP Kennedy Stewart scored 11 and 10 per cent respectively.

Twenty-two per cent of respondents thought Louie would be a "bad choice" for mayor and 16 per cent said the same of Bremner.

Two other candidates saw increases in popularity in the most recent poll: park board commissioner John Coupar of the NPA (nine per cent) and urban geographer Colleen Hardwick (eight per cent).

Simon Fraser University professor Shauna Sylvester and activist Morgane Oger are seen as "good choices" by only seven per cent of Vancouverites, according to the poll.

'Unity candidate' proves popular

"I think one of the issues that the poll clearly outlines is the need for the progressive forces to unite," Canseco said, citing a lack of unity among the left that allowed Bremner to win his council seat in a by-election last October despite low voter turnout.

When it comes to political affiliations, half of Vancouverites said they want a single candidate supported by Vision Vancouver, the Green Party and the Coalition of Progressive Electors. Nearly a quarter of residents, however, disagreed.

"Part of the situation now is: Is there appetite for the people in the city to want a unity candidate that will bring together the Green Party, Vision, COPE, OneCity? And the answer is yes," Canseco said.

The notion of a "unity candidate" was most popular among those who voted for current Mayor Gregor Robertson (64 per cent) or COPE's Meena Wong (62 per cent) in the 2014 election.

"That appetite is there, it's more a question of can all these political forces find a way work together?" he said.

On the other hand, a majority (65 per cent) of those who voted for the NPA's Kirk LaPointe in that election are against a united centre-left in the city.

Forty-nine per cent said they would "definitely" like to see several parties represented in council after the election.

The question of whether it's time for the NPA to take control of City Council and the mayor's chair was Research Co.'s most divisive. Thirty-thee per cent of residents said yes, 33 per cent said no and 34 per cent said they weren’t sure.

Housing 'number one thing on the minds of voters'

Housing remains the most important issue for 42 per cent of Vancouverites, according to the poll.

"The number one issue is housing, by far, and I think it's interesting to look at it," Canseco said.

"It used to be a situation where the millennial was probably more interested in that and trying to figure out if they can buy a place or if they can rent a bigger place, but it's affecting Generation X. It's also affecting Baby Boomers."

The cost of living came in a close second with 36 per cent, while poverty and government accountability only reached five and four per cent respectively.

Nearly half of respondents (47 per cent) said they're excited to head to the polls in October, but Robertson voters from 2014 were the least enthusiastic.

Canseco said part of what might be driving interest in the upcoming election is the lack of an incumbent running for mayor and new rules banning corporate and union donations that will lead to more grass-roots campaigns.

"It's going to resemble more the campaigns that we used to have in the 70s and 80s with people knocking on doors and trying to get their names across," he said.

"You had the opportunity to run campaigns with a war room where there was always coffee and pizza and now you're going to be in a situation where things are going to be completely different."

With files from CTV Vancouver's David Molko