(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The governing Conservative party holds the upper hand in Canada’s federal political scene, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies published in the Toronto Star. 33 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories in the next federal election, while 30 per cent would support the opposition Liberal party.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The governing Conservative party holds the upper hand in Canada’s federal political scene, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies published in the Toronto Star. 33 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories in the next federal election, while 30 per cent would support the opposition Liberal party.
The New Democratic Party (NDP) is third with 18 per cent, followed by the Bloc Québécois with 11 per cent, and the Green party with six per cent. Support for the Tories fell by three points since early July, while backing for the Grits remained stable.
Canadians renewed the House of Commons in October 2008. The Conservative party—led by Stephen Harper—received 37.6 per cent of the vote, and secured 143 seats in the 308-member lower house. Harper assembled a minority administration. The Tories also earned a minority mandate after the 2006 election, ending more than 12 years of government by the Liberal party.
In late January, Canadian finance minister Jim Flaherty presented the federal budget, which predicts a $70 billion U.S. budget deficit over the next five years, and includes a $33 billion U.S. economic stimulus package, as well as tax relief aimed at the lower and middle class.
Last month, Green leader Elizabeth May discussed her party’s strategy for the next election, saying, "Now the party is convinced that our number-one goal is to elect me to the House of Commons. So that changes quite a lot of things. [The real question is] Where is the greenest riding in Canada? Where is the place where people are more likely than anywhere else to say, ‘We want that voice in the House of Commons’?"
The Green party has never elected a member to a Canadian provincial or federal legislature.
Polling Data
If a federal election were held tomorrow, which one of the following parties would you be most likely to support in your constituency?
|
Jul. 18
|
Jul. 3
|
Jun. 18
|
May 29
|
|
|
Conservative
|
33%
|
36%
|
32%
|
31%
|
|
Liberal
|
30%
|
30%
|
31%
|
33%
|
|
New Democratic Party
|
18%
|
16%
|
18%
|
17%
|
|
Bloc Québécois
|
11%
|
10%
|
11%
|
9%
|
|
Green
|
6%
|
7%
|
7%
|
7%
|
|
Other
|
2%
|
1%
|
2%
|
2%
|
Source: Angus Reid Strategies / Toronto Star
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,007 Canadian adults, conducted on Jul. 16 to Jul. 17, 2009. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
