(Angus Reid Global Scan) – The opposition Conservative party would get roughly the same support if either of two politicians took over from current leader Stephen Harper, according to a poll by Leger Marketing published in the Globe and Mail.
(Angus Reid Global Scan) – The opposition Conservative party would get roughly the same support if either of two politicians took over from current leader Stephen Harper, according to a poll by Leger Marketing published in the Globe and Mail.
In a regular voting intention survey, the Tories are in second place with 27 per cent, 11 points behind the governing Liberal party. With either New Brunswick premier Bernard Lord or deputy leader Peter MacKay leading the Conservatives, 26 per cent of respondents would support the Conservatives.
Harper became the Conservative party’s first leader in March 2004. The political organization was established after a merger between the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance and the Progressive Conservative party.
On Apr. 27, Harper criticized an agreement on the federal budget reached by prime minister Paul Martin and New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton, saying, “I will be asking our caucus to put this government out of its misery at the earliest possible opportunity.” On May 19, the House of Commons accepted the $3.6 billion U.S. amendment to the federal budget. The motion passed after speaker Peter Milliken broke a 152-152 tie by supporting the government.
Lord has acted as New Brunswick’s premier since 1999. MacKay was the last leader of the Progressive Conservatives before the merger took place.
Polling Data
If federal elections were held today and Bernard Lord / Peter McKay were leader of the Conservative party, for which political party would you be most likely to vote for?
Actual | w/ Lord | w/ McKay | |
Liberal | 38% | 38% | 37% |
Conservative | 27% | 26% | 26% |
New Democratic Party | 17% | 17% | 18% |
Bloc Québécois | 12% | 13% | 13% |
Green | 4% | 4% | 4% |
Other | 2% | 3% | 3% |
Source: Leger Marketing / The Globe and Mail
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,509 adult Canadians, conducted from May 19 to May 22, 2005. Margin of error is 2.6 per cent.
