VANCOUVER -- The BC Liberals have been out of power for less than four years, but a new poll suggests that's not nearly long enough for some voters.
The Research Co. survey found 55 per cent of voters in British Columbia either "strongly agree" or "moderately agree" that they would be "very upset" if the provincial Liberals were to form government again.
That number increases to 65 per cent among voters on Vancouver Island, and decreases to just 38 per cent among those in northern B.C.
Research Co. also asked respondents if they think the BC Liberals and BC Conservatives should merge into one political party. While only 34 per cent of overall voters agreed, that number nearly doubled to 62 per cent among those who voted Liberal in the Oct. 24 election.
While the Conservatives didn't win any seats last Saturday, they had a significant showing in some ridings – including Chilliwack, where the Conservative candidate took 18 per cent of the vote as the NDP's Dan Coulter unseated BC Liberal incumbent John Martin. (LINK)
Respondents in the Research Co. poll showed a similar level of support for merging the NDP and BC Green parties, at 38 per cent. NDP voters were more likely to express interest in a merger than Green voters.
The survey found people who voted Liberal in the last federal election were closely split between the supporting the BC Liberals and NDP in Saturday's vote, at 31 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively.
A full 60 per cent of federal Conservative voters went with the BC Liberals as well, while just 17 per cent voted for the NDP.
Research Co.'s poll was conducted online from Oct. 22-25 among 832 B.C. adults who voted in the most recent provincial election. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, according to the polling firm.
