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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Trudeau gets hot poll, backer

LeBlanc drops own leadership bid

By: Staff Writer

Posted: 10/6/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES Justin Trudeau (right) got the support of lifelong friend Dominic LeBlanc on Friday. (CP)

DIEPPE, N.B. -- On a day when Justin Trudeau's Liberal leadership bid won the support of Dominic LeBlanc -- a scion of Canada's Liberal establishment -- a new poll came out that suggests he could reshape the country's political landscape.

The latest Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey released Friday says 36 per cent of those who took part in the poll across the country last week said they would be certain or likely to vote Liberal in the next election if Trudeau is at the party's helm.

The poll says he would get "significant support" east of Manitoba, with 40 per cent of those surveyed in Ontario, 43 per cent in Quebec and 48 per cent in Atlantic Canada indicating they would be certain or likely to vote for the Liberals if Trudeau is leading the party.

"Justin Trudeau -- more than any other prospective candidate we tested -- holds the best prospect for a revival of the Liberal party," said Allan Gregg, chairman of Harris-Decima. "In fact, he is the only candidate we tested that has the potential to broaden the Liberal vote beyond its current base."

Gregg said the results in Quebec "debunk the myth that the Trudeau name is a liability in the province of Quebec or among francophones."

The poll also suggests while Trudeau is a threat to the Conservatives, the NDP has the most to lose from his leadership of the Liberals.

The poll suggests if Quebec MP Marc Garneau were leading the Liberals, 18 per cent of respondents would be certain or likely to vote for the party, while the Bank of Canada's Mark Carney stood at 16 per cent.

The telephone poll taken between Sept. 27 and 30 of just over 1,000 Canadians is considered accurate within plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

It also looked at LeBlanc's chances in the leadership race, but the New Brunswick MP set his own ambitions aside on Friday to back his lifelong friend.

LeBlanc's move, coming only three days after Trudeau announced his candidacy, effectively leaves the Montreal MP without any serious challengers waiting in the wings, prompting more speculation about a boring coronation rather than an exciting race leading to the final voting in April.

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 6, 2012 A21

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