O'Leary, Chong among most appealing Tory leadership candidates, survey reveals

Kevin O’Leary and Michael Chong are the most ‘politically appealing’ Tory leadership candidates, a new Nanos research survey suggests.

O’Leary received favourable reviews from nearly 15 per cent of Canadians surveyed who found him the most appealing of all 14 candidates currently in the running for the Conservative party’s top job.

Chong, the MP for Wellington—Halton Hills, trailed with 9.2 per cent. He is the only candidate to have embraced a carbon pricing plan.

Chong was followed by Maxime Bernier at 8.5 per cent and Lisa Raitt at 7.1 per cent.

Other candidates, including Kellie Leitch, Erin O’Toole, Steven Blaney and Andrew Scheer, were found most appealing by only about 2 per cent of survey respondents. Meanwhile, Chris Alexander, Deepak Obhrai, Pierre Lemieux, Brad Trost, Rick Peterson and Andrew Saxton received one per cent or less.

Pollster Nik Nanos said survey results indicate appeal is about more than just name recognition and media exposure.

“If this was just name recognition, realistically Kellie Leitch and Kevin O’Leary would be at the top of the list,” Nanos said in an interview with CTVNews.ca.

Nanos pointed out that Chong, Bernier and Raitt’s appeal also shows that each one of them “brings something different to the race that people find appealing.”

Chong’s progressive ideas and youth give him an edge, whereas Bernier’s appeal in Quebec and Raitt’s success as a former cabinet minister make them appealing, Nanos said.

“For Kevin O’Leary, whether you love him or hate him, he is a brash personality that is very focused on jobs and the economy.”

On the topic of bilingualism, survey results revealed a divide among Canadians. Thirty-three per cent of those surveyed said they would likely vote against a party leader who couldn’t speak both of Canada’s official languages. Another 16 per cent said they would be ‘somewhat likely’ to vote against a bilingual candidate.

Meanwhile, 34 per cent of those surveyed said they’d be ‘unlikely’ to vote against a party leader who couldn’t speak both English and French.

Many of the Conservative party leader candidates have struggled to communicate in French.

Nanos added that the candidates’ overall appeal to Canadians doesn’t mean they have a better chance of winning the leadership race, since only Conservative party members vote for the party’s new leader.