[LINK] "NDP making huge gains as Canada tilts leftward: poll"

[rfmcdonald]

Adrian Humphrey's National Post article describing the ongoing shifts in public opinion in Canada is stunning. Who a decade ago could have imagined that the New Democratic Party might be in a position to form a minority government? The suggestion of an ongoing shift to the left, too, is interesting.

The Canadian public is on a distinct tilt to the left, says a new national public opinion poll, suggesting concern over wealth distribution has traction beyond the Occupy tents and protest parades.

The nationwide poll suggests the New Democratic Party would form a minority federal government if this were election day and a strong majority of Canadians believe the country suffers from an income gap, where the rich are getting too rich and the poor are getting too poor.

The wide-ranging Forum Poll for the National Post sought the opinions of a sample of Canadians of voting age and found the NDP was the declared preference of more than one-third, compared to less than one-third who chose the Conservative Party and one-fifth the Liberal Party.

The voting intentions, if actual ballots, would translate into a minority government for the NDP, says Forum Research Inc.’s president Lorne Bozinoff.

The NDP would capture 138 seats in the 308-seat parliament, up from the 103 they currently hold. The Conservatives, who won a majority government last election with 166 seats, would be reduced to 123 seats. The Liberals would take 42 seats, a poor showing but still considerably better than the 34 they took in the last election, the poll suggests.

“A lot of what we see and hear about these days is the ’1%’ versus the ’99%’ and this poll is a perfect reflection of that,” Mr. Bozinoff said.

[. . .]

Tom Mulcair, the NDP leader, also captured the highest approval rating among national party leaders, with 41% of those polled giving him a positive rating. Stephen Harper, the Conservative prime minister, was given a nod of approval by 33%, the same as Liberal leader Bob Rae.

By far the most polarizing leader was Mr. Harper. When the number of respondents who disapproved was subtracted from those who approved, Mr. Harper’s net approval rating stood at a gaping -26, compared to -5 for Mr. Rae and +10 for Mr. Mulcair.