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This is more than just the people booing Mayor Jyoti Gondek at the Flames game.
Far more.
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The latest news confirms the obvious.
At least it’s obvious to those who choose to hear and see and actually talk to Calgarians.
It’s obvious to those who paid attention to the well-respected Think HQ poll around Christmas showing Gondek and the city council she heads to be the least popular local politicians in Calgary’s history.
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Now it’s even more obvious as that ugly arithmetic is confirmed in a recently-released nose count by Leger.
The numbers you will see showing Gondek in deep trouble are actually most unusual for Calgary.
You see, sitting mayors in this city are generally treated with kid gloves and not held to account.
The result? They often score higher popularity numbers than they deserve.
So the Leger poll.
The math starts off nice and easy.
The question. How do you feel things are going these days in Calgary? Are they going in the right direction or are they on the wrong track?
Some won’t say. A little more than one in three say the city is going in the right direction.
The majority say the city is on the wrong track.
When a train is on the wrong track it is no surprise if what follows is a trainwreck.
The most important issues for folks also do not surprise with cost of living, property taxes, the economy and public safety in the top five.
For years we’ve been told by city hall paper shufflers Calgarians aren’t that concerned about property taxes.
Go figure.
By the way, right at the bottom of important issues is bike lanes.
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And that’s an issue city hall insiders get all excited about as we hear claims Calgary will one day be the bicycle-filled Amsterdam of Canada.
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NOTE TO READER; Now this is where it hurts if you are on Team Gondek.
Really hurts.
On a scale of zero to 10 where zero equals not one bit satisfied with how Gondek is handling your most important issue and 10 is very satisfied, three per cent are very satisfied.
Three per cent.
The number who give Gondek a zero is …. wait for it … 23 per cent, roughly one in four.
Are you kidding? One in four giving a zero grade.
Doesn’t the mayor get a point or two for participation?
More than half of those polled give Gondek a four or less.
In other words, a failing grade in most people’s books.
And if you put all the grades together Gondek would score 3.9 out of 10. A solid F.
On handling issues, the calculus continues to be cruel.
Where do people think Gondek has done a good job?
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On bike lanes more think Gondek is doing a good job and not a bad job, but only barely more people.
Everything else on the issues front goes from bad to real bad to horrible bad.
Examples. On public safety it’s Gondek bad job 56 per cent. Gondek good job 28 per cent.
On property taxes it’s Gondek bad job 67 per cent. Gondek good job 18 per cent.
Then the big question.
If a vote were held now would you vote for Gondek or someone else?
That’s right, Gondek or the unknown.
This is where the Gondek supporters could flex their political muscle.
Prove the naysayers are full of it.
Well, only 11 per cent would vote for Gondek. Somebody else? 54 per cent.
Those who don’t know sits at 22 per cent. Some others won’t vote.
Now let us not rub too much salt into the wound but more people also supported the Recall Gondek campaign than opposed it.
The silver lining in the dark cloud for Gondek is time.
The city election is not until the fall of next year.
In more than three decades, this scribbler has not seen a sitting mayor turfed.
City hall usually gets to do what it wants unless they’re right in your face on your street or at your house and even then a lot of Calgarians forget or don’t care or are too busy planning their forever move to Kelowna.
They may grumble but they don’t count grumbles at the polling station.
Gondek could come out with a bold new approach to winning hearts and minds.
This column will call the play-by-play if the mayor hits the reset button.
Clearly, Gondek sticking to what’s got her this far is a long-shot bet for the win.
In an interview Gondek told Postmedia she is “not focused on populism.”
“I am not focused on a popularity contest.”
If Gondek has any hope for a second term, her actions will have to speak louder than those words.
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