VICTORIA -- British Columbia Premier John Horgan remains the most popular premier in Canada, according to the latest job-approval ratings Wednesday from the Angus Reid Institute.

The B.C. premier was endorsed by 66 per cent of British Columbians who responded to the online survey conducted between Feb. 26 and March 3.

Horgan has held the top spot among the country’s provincial leaders since at least last July when his approval rating hit 68 per cent before climbing to 69 per cent in August.

Horgan is one of only five Canadian premiers endorsed by at least half of their constituents, according to Angus Reid.

He edges out Quebec Premier François Legault (62 per cent) and Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe (57 per cent) for the top spot.

 

The polling firm says Horgan’s approval rating was likely buoyed by the recent rollout of the province’s COVID-19 vaccination plan.

“The new strategy made headlines across the country for extending the time between first and second doses of applicable COVID-19 vaccine to four months. After initial conflict over this timeline, other provinces announced they’d adopt or study the same four-month spacing,” Angus Reid said in a statement announcing the poll results Wednesday.

“Time will tell if more recent problems – such as Monday’s swamping of a hotline for making vaccination appointments – will have an impact on the level to which British Columbians approve of their premier in the coming months,” the institute added.According to the survey results, 28 per cent of respondents disapproved of Horgan’s performance, while six per cent said they were uncertain.

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs clinched the fourth-place spot among premiers, with a 54-per-cent approval rating. Ontario’s Doug Ford fell to fifth place with a spit 50-per-cent approval rating, dropping 19 points since last May.

Rounding out the bottom of the list, Premier Andrew Furey of Newfoundland and Labrador has a 45-per-cent approval rating, while Alberta’s Jason Kenney sits at 39 per cent; Manitoba’s Brian Pallister is at 36 per cent and Nova Scotia’s Iain Rankin, who was just sworn in last month, sits at 31 per cent.

Angus Reid says the poll of 5,004 Canadians carries a margin of error of plus or minus 1.4 percentage points.