How did the leaders' debate land with voters?

Saskatchewan Party leader Scott Moe, left, and Saskatchewan NDP leader Carla Beck look on before a televised leaders’ debate in Regina, on Wednesday, October 16, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu

Most voters who watched some or all of the Saskatchewan leaders’ debate last week say Carla Beck outperformed Scott Moe, but more of those who tuned in said they were voting NDP.

According to a new poll by CTV News in partnership with Saskatchewan-based research firm Insightrix, 77 per cent of NDP voters said they watched last week’s debate highlights, in part, or in full, compared to 59 per cent of Saskatchewan Party voters.

“It's tricky to see what's going to actually come out of a debate. I mean, in terms of the people who actually tuned in and listened to or watched any part of it we're looking at 30 per cent of the population,” said Insightrix Research Director Lang McGilp.

“I think what it shows is moderate to low engagement in the debate process, but it certainly will have some component of impact, certainly for some, some individuals.”

“Tuning into the debate or at least hearing highlights from media coverage is a lot higher amongst those planning to vote for the NDP versus those voting for the Sask. Party,” McGilp added.

Neither leader declared victory following the debate, but 33 per cent of voters said Carla Beck had a stronger performance than Scott Moe.

“I think it's more indicative of who was watching rather than, you know, perhaps an assessment,” McGilp said.

Thirty per cent said there was no clear winner.

Among the topics were many of the key issues discussed in a pre-election poll CTV News carried out alongside Insightrix in September.

Top issues for many voters include healthcare, inflation and rising costs, taxation and education, among others.

“We know from the issues that healthcare is number one for all Saskatchewan residents, certainly more so for NDP voters,” McGilp said. “Cost of living is number two. And we've seen parties make comments on that.”

The unweighted sample size involved 802 adult residents, surveyed online through the Insightrix SaskWatch Research panel, a reflection of the province’s general population through age, gender and region.

The research was conducted between Oct. 18 and 20, with an estimated margin of error of plus-minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The poll was conducted in partnership between CTV News and Insightrix Research.

-With files from David Prisciak