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Tories Have 11-Point Edge in Canada

July 24, 2006

- The governing Conservative party is still the mot popular political organization in Canada, according to a poll by The Strategic Counsel released by CTV and the Globe and Mail. 37 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories in the next federal election.

The Liberal party is second with 26 per cent, followed by the New Democratic Party (NDP) with 18 per cent, the Bloc Québécois with 11 per cent, and the Green party with nine per cent. Support for the Tories increased by one point in a month, while backing for both the Liberals and the NDP fell by the same margin.

Canadians renewed the House of Commons in January. The Conservative party—led by Stephen Harper—received 36.3 per cent of the vote, and secured 124 seats in the 308-member lower house. Since February, Harper leads a minority administration after more than 12 years of government by the Liberal party.

The Liberal party will elect a new leader in December. The list of 11 candidates includes former environment minister Stéphane Dion, academic Michael Ignatieff, former Ontario premier Bob Rae, and former Ontario education minister Gerard Kennedy.

Liberal spokesperson Pat Breton said interim Liberal leader Bill Graham is contemplating the possibility of an election this fall, saying, "He can't just sit idly by while Harper sabre-rattles and threatens to make every vote a confidence vote."

Polling Data

How would you vote if an election were held today?

Jul. 2006

Jun. 2006

May 2006

Conservative

37%

36%

35%

Liberal

26%

27%

31%

New Democratic Party

18%

19%

14%

Bloc Québécois

11%

9%

10%

Green

9%

9%

9%

Source: The Strategic Counsel / CTV / The Globe and Mail
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 Canadian adults, conducted from Jul. 13 to Jul. 15, 2006. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.