December 11, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - The governing Conservative party holds the upper hand in Canada’s federal political scene, according to a poll by The Strategic Counsel released by CTV and the Globe and Mail. 32 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories in the next House of Commons ballot.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - The governing Conservative party holds the upper hand in Canada’s federal political scene, according to a poll by The Strategic Counsel released by CTV and the Globe and Mail. 32 per cent of respondents would vote for the Tories in the next House of Commons ballot.

The Liberal party is second with 29 per cent, followed by the New Democratic Party (NDP) with 16 per cent, the Green party with 13 per cent, and the Bloc Québécois with 10 per cent. Support for the Tories remained stable since mid-November, while backing for the Grits fell by three points.

Canadians renewed the House of Commons in January 2006. 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. Harper leads a minority administration after more than 12 years of government by the Liberal party. In December 2006, former environment minister Stéphane Dion became the new leader of the Liberals.

On Nov. 14, Liberal democratic reform critic Brian Murphy expressed disappointment with the government’s proposals to change the way the Senate of Canada operates, saying, "The Senate was created to provide regional balance and represent provincial interests, yet the prime minister has once again shut the provinces out of the process. (...) He has completely ignored the views expressed by provincial governments during public hearings in the Senate."

Polling Data

How would you vote if an election were held today?

	Dec. 9	Nov. 11	Oct. 14
Conservative	32%	32%	34%
Liberal	29%	32%	29%
New Democratic Party	16%	12%	15%
Green	13%	13%	12%
Bloc Québécois	10%	11%	10%

Source: The Strategic Counsel / CTV / The Globe and Mail
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 Canadian adults, conducted from Dec. 6 to Dec. 9, 2007. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.