New research from The Australia Institute shows that the leaders of the South Australian Liberal and Labor parties have similar overall satisfaction ratings ahead of the March state election.
The Australia Institute surveyed of a representative sample of 602 South Australians in February, asking about their level of satisfaction with the job being done by the Premier and Opposition Leader as well as which Ministers or Shadow Ministers they had heard of.
Key Findings:
- 45% of South Australians are satisfied with the way Steven Marshall is doing his job as Premier, while 34% of South Australians are dissatisfied.
- 43% of South Australians are satisfied with the way Peter Malinauskas is doing his job as Opposition Leader, while 19% of South Australians are dissatisfied.
- This produces a net satisfaction rating of +11% for the Premier and +23% for the Opposition Leader.
- Among female voters, Steven Marshall has a net satisfaction rating of +6% and Peter Malinauskas has a net satisfaction rating of +23%.
- Among metro voters, Steven Marshall has a net satisfaction rating of +8% and Peter Malinauskas has a net satisfaction rating of +22%.
"While the Premier is a little more well-known than his opponent, both he and the Opposition Leader have overall satisfaction ratings just below 50%," said Noah Schultz-Byard, SA Director at independent think tank The Australia Institute.
"There is some discrepancy in net satisfaction, however, with the Opposition Leader being particularly popular amongst women and metropolitan voters. This is potentially significant because this election is likely to come down to a handful of tight contents in marginal, metro seats.
"All signs point to the March election coming down to the wire and previous Australia Institute research has shown that healthcare is likely to be top of mind for voters, followed by the economy and then climate change."
