Premier Mike Baird sidesteps his government's scandals to streak ahead of Labor in latest Galaxy opinion poll Premier Mike Baird has streaked ahead of Labor Opposition Leader John Robertson. Picture: John Feder Source: News Corp Australia Surfing Premier Mike Baird. MIKE Baird is fast earning the nickname "Mr Untouchable." He has weathered the storm of controversy at ICAC that saw him lose 10 MPs and is on track for a landslide win at the March state election, having increased the Coalition's lead over Labor to 56 per cent to 44 on a two-party preferred basis. So dire is Labor's standing that in a preferred Labor leaderership question put in a Galaxy Daily Telegraph poll this week, Opposition Leader John Robertson was soundly beaten by "uncommitted." Nineteen per cent preferred Mr Robertson as leader to take Labor to the next election, 8 per cent wanted Shadow Treasurer Michael Daley and eight per cent Labor upper house leader Luke Foley, but 59 per cent answered "uncommitted." The Galaxy Daily Telegraph poll of 938 voters taken on Wednesday and Thursday night this week found primary support for the Coalition at a whopping 46 per cent (up one since August). Primary vote for Labor was at 34 per cent (down one) with the Greens on 11 and others/Independents 9. Mike Baird at Queenscliff SLSC to thank volunteers for their contribution to the community. The result comes despite the ICAC dramas, including allegations of bribes and illegal donation rackets involving Liberal MPs, and also comes despite an unpopular plan by the Premier to sell the electricity networks. The Coalition two-party preferred result is up from 55 in August and 53 in May, shortly after Barry O'Farrell resigned for misleading ICAC, but short of the high water mark of 64.2 Barry O'Farrell secured to win the 2011 election. The eight per cent swing from that result is enough for the government to lose 14 seats if it was uniform statewide. That would bring the Coalition from 67 down to 53 seats and Labor up from 23 to 37 in the Legislative Assembly. Rhiannon Punter, 19 gets a selfie with the Premier as he rides on a Waratah train from Central to Parramatta. On the question of whether Mike Baird or John Robertson was the preferred premier, Mr Baird was at 49 per cent (up six since May) with Mr Robertson at 18 per cent with 33 per cent uncommitted. Former Liberal premier Nick Greiner yesterday said Mr Baird had had a great start to the job. "I think given the circumstances he inherited with the donations stuff, I think he's going superbly," Mr Greiner said. I think he got it right on day one when he said he wanted to transform the state. I think he's grown into the job. He's got sort of a non-political manner. Former Liberal Premier John Fahey who narrowly lost office in a shock result in 1995 said the government should not be complacent. But he praised Mr Baird and said Labor was still on the nose with voters. "No one would believe after the mess of the later years of Labor that it's time to go back to them," Mr Fahey said. Popular Premier Mike Baird. Comment by Andrew Clennell THE March election is set to be another NSW poll where we know the result before the campaign even begins. It is an election about whether the government loses as few as 10 seats or as many as 20. Suddenly it's looking much more like being 10. Some say Barry O'Farrell's bottle of Grange is the best thing to happen to NSW in years, because Mike Baird has had such an energetic start in the role. The government certainly has a new lease on life with Baird in charge. Former premier John Fahey said of Baird yesterday: "He talks more like a man from the western suburbs than someone from the northern beaches." Another former premier, Nick Greiner, yesterday backed Baird's proposed power sell-off. "It will transform the state," he said. Labor's leadership crisis continues with no plan, no ready successor and no way out. The talk is that upper house leader Luke Foley should be convinced to run for Auburn to resolve a branch-stacking issue and offer a leadership alternative to run with straight after the election. Some don't like Baird's power sale, but they respect he has a plan to pay for the infrastructure we need. Opposition Leader John Robertson is a man without a plan. Originally published as Teflon Mike: Why NSW voters love Baird despite scandals