Social issues at top of mind for Saskatoon voters, new poll shows

Social issues are top of mind for Saskatoon residents as they prepare to head to the polls on Wednesday to choose their next mayor and councillors.

Social issues are top of mind for Saskatoon residents as they prepare to head to the polls on Wednesday to choose their next mayor and councillors.

That’s according to exclusive survey data from Insightrix, produced in partnership with CTV News this month.

When asked to select which three issues have the most impact on their vote, nearly half of respondents chose homelessness and shelters, at 47 per cent.

Thirty-eight per cent of respondents told Insightrix crime in Saskatoon would impact who’s name they decide to mark their X beside on Nov. 13.

Although technically a provincial responsibility, the surge in homelessness in the city has been a reliable source of contention, as councillors and city administrators attempt to find locations for temporary shelters to keep people safe and alive, especially over the winter.

The city’s largest shelter, the Saskatoon Tribal Council’s wellness centre located in the Fairhaven neighbourhood, has drawn the ire of a small but vocal contingent who claim the opening of the facility brought crime to the neighbourhood.

Police statistics negated their claims, but neighbourhood residents opposed to the shelter were unmoved, and promoted campaigns to prevent another smaller shelter from opening in the Sutherland neighbourhood last year.