Premier Ewart Brown rode a wave of popularity during his leadership honeymoon, a new poll reveals today.

Asked if their opinion of him was favourable or unfavourable, 53 percent of voters said they liked Bermuda's new leader. Nearly 17 percent said they didn't. And 29 percent were unsure.

Voters seemed split, however, when asked the same question about his Opposition rival Wayne Furbert.

The man made UBP leader in March impressed 32 percent of those polled — but a third thought the opposite. Some 34 percent told pollsters they were uncertain.

The popularity poll will make interesting reading for Dr. Brown.

When the last survey was conducted in September — before the PLP leadership battle erupted — 54 percent of people quizzed said they thought the then Deputy Leader was doing a "very effective" job in Tourism and Transport. This contrasted with the popularity rating at the time of former Premier Alex Scott. His favourability rating slumped from 51 per cent in May to just 42 per cent the month before he was ousted to the Government backbenches.

But the popularity enjoyed by Dr. Brown during his early days in office is nothing new.

His predecessor boasted high ratings when he first became Premier, particularly in the aftermath of 2003's Hurricane Fabian, although it soon dipped in the following years.

And Dame Jennifer Smith's popularity was sky-high when the PLP swept to power in 1998, before sinking in the run-up to the 2003 general election.

Mr. Furbert's popularity continues to fall. His favourable rating — which stood at 28 percent when he replaced Grant Gibbons as UBP leader — has has dropped from 41 percent in July, to 34 percent in September, down to 32 percent this month.

A United Bermuda Party spokesman predicted that Dr. Brown's support would decline over time and Mr. Furbert's would pick up.

"Dr. Brown is an able showman, but when you get past the pop and sizzle his record of accomplishment is actually quite thin: fast ferries (which was a UBP plan), Jet Blue (which was the late David Allen's initiative) and beach volleyball. He creates a lot of flurry and sense of momentum around these things, and he's good at it. But in terms of meaningful change that benefits the people, his record cannot be separated from that of the PLP Government, which by his own admission is less than satisfactory," he said.

Addressing the poll results relating to Mr. Furbert, he said: "We think we offer voters a better alternative in all key areas of public life. Making people aware of our policies and programmes will take time, but we're working on it. Mr. Furbert is the team leader and as the policies take hold with the public his support will grow."

When the survey results were analysed according to race, 72 per cent of blacks saw Dr. Brown in a favourable light with just six percent unimpressed. One in five were not sure.

Whites were less decided, with 36 per cent in favour, 29 percent against and a third uncertain. In contrast, only 22 per cent of blacks gave their opinion of Mr. Furbert as favourable, with nearly 50 per cent against. Almost a third were unsure what their opinion was on him.

Among whites, the UBP leader won praise from 42 percent and 18 percent disagreed. Almost 40 per cent were uncertain. More than half the men and women polled gave the thumbs up to Dr. Brown when asked their opinion of him. This compared to 35 percent of men and 29 percent of women who said their verdict on Wayne Furbert was favourable.

The Premier's favourability rating across all age groups, and among richer and poorer voters, is consistently floating just above the 50 per cent mark.

His UBP rival is most popular among older voters, as 41 percent of those aged 55-plus said they liked him. This compared to 21 percent of 18 to 35 year olds and 29 percent of people in the 36 to 54 year old bracket. Nearly half the youngest age range said they were not sure.

Just under 30 percent of voters with a household income below $50,000 said their opinion of Mr. Furbert was favourable, compared to 37 percent unfavourable. Twenty-eight percent of middle-income earners liked him, in contrast to 37 percent who said the opposite. Nearly 40 per cent of richer voters backed him, with 27 percent stating the opposite.