A new poll shows many Canadians still think Justin Trudeau is still the best man for prime minister, but he has only a narrow lead over new Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. Leger released the findings of an online survey conducted over the weekend of about 1,500 respondents. The results show the Liberals’ popularity has declined since a year ago, when Trudeau was re-elected for a second term to form a minority government. Some 28 per cent of respondents said they would vote Liberal if an election were held today, compared with almost 33 per cent who said the same last September. Opinion: Pierre Poilievre’s financial priorities are clearer than they seem The creation of Pierre Poilievre, conservative proselytizer And the results show some former Liberal voters are switching left and right. Some 34 per cent of respondents said they would park their vote with the Tories, an increase from the 26 per cent of voters who favored the Conservatives after last year’s election. Another 23 per cent of respondents said they would choose the NDP, up from nearly 18 per cent in the election. 3% of respondents chose the Green Party and another 3% would choose the People’s Party of Canada. But when it comes to who will make the best prime minister, the data shows Trudeau has the lead over both Poulievre and the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh. Trudeau was the top choice for 24 percent of respondents, which was three points ahead of Poulievre and seven points ahead of Singh. The new poll comes 10 days after Poilievre was elected to lead the Tories to a landslide victory, which many hope marks the beginning of a unified Conservative party. It cannot be assigned a margin of error because online polls are not considered truly random samples. In terms of regional breakdowns, the survey shows Poilievre has the weakest support in Quebec and strongest in Alberta compared to Trudeau, who is strongest in Atlantic Canada and weakest in Alberta. The data shows Ontario is much closer, with 34 per cent of respondents in that province saying they would choose a Conservative party led by Poilievre compared to 32 per cent who said they would choose his Liberals Trudo.
