Jack Layton leader of the opposition????
I am trying not to post too many of these polls because it is not worth getting too excited or down as they come in. At this point we need to run a disciplined campaign right until October 14. There is no room for mistakes and as we have seen in the past, it is the last week that really matters and the biggest poll of all is on the election day. Having said that, on this one I couldn't resist. Quickly this is becoming a race for second place. The carbon tax has fallen flat and Dion has proven to be a major mistake and disaster as leader. The verdict is still out on if this will be a majority or minority, but a new story is developing...the race for leader of the opposition. Jack Obama, I mean Layton is pulling even with the Liberals and Stephane Dion. Could the NDP form the official opposition? Will this vote split result in Conservative wins in some key areas? Jack Layton has consistently polled better than Dion on leadership numbers. At this point anything is possible but it is obvious that the Liberal vote is quickly collapsing. By the way this poll doesn't come from the National Post...it comes from the Toronto Star the most Liberal friendly paper in the country. I suspect Jack Layton might gain some more ground from Dion in the national debates when he has the opportunity to hold the Liberal party to account for sitting on their hands during confidence votes in the last election. Toronto area ridings should think long and hard about how they vote this time.
-Darryl
Grits, NDP pulling even?
Richard Brennan
OTTAWA BUREAU
The polls are starting to reveal a new race this federal election – for second place.
The strength of NDP Leader Jack Layton leadership numbers seem to be pulling the party up while Liberal Leader Stephane Dion’s seemed to be dragging his party down.
An Angus Reid/Toronto Star poll published today put the Conservatives at 39 per cent, the Liberals, 23 per cent and the New Democrats, 18 per cent.
And according the latest numbers from Angus Reid, 32 per cent of Canadians believe that Conservative Leader Stephen Harper would make the best prime minister, 23 per cent for Layton and 15 per cent for Dion.
Could Layton be the leader of Her Majesty’s loyal opposition?
Behind the scenes the New Democrats are giddy with the thought of beating the Liberal out for second spot for the first time, but publicly Layton keeps on the same message that he’s running to replace Harper.
“I am interested in offering Canadians a choice for prime minister,” he told reporters.
“Let me tell you my friends, something is happening out there,” Layton told a lively rally at the CNE yesterday with almost 500 of the party faithful cheering on the mustachioed leader.
“The choice in this election is crystal clear. Stephen Harper of Jack Layton.”
Layton concedes that the Liberal Party's demise and voters’ apprehension with Harper’s government is a winning combination that could cast the New Democratic Party as a legitimate alternative to the old guard this time around.
“We are on the move. We have seen this before where real change emerges as a possibility,” Layton told reporters.
http://www.thestar.com/FederalElection/article/498968
