NDP narrows B.C. Liberal lead to 2 points in online poll

With the latest election poll showing the B.C. Liberals and the B.C. NDP in a neck and neck race to win the May 12 provincial election, both parties are making a last push to shore up support among key voter groups.

An Angus Reid Strategies poll released Friday morning suggested 44 per cent of decided voters would vote for the B.C. Liberal candidate in their riding while 42 per cent would choose the NDP and 10 per cent would choose the B.C. Green Party.

Compared with previous polls of the same questions, the results showed Liberal support remaining relatively unchanged, but NDP support had risen five per cent since March, mostly at the expense of the Greens and other parties.

Parties court key votes

The poll showed the B.C. Liberals continued to trail the NDP in support from lower income earners, voters under the age of 35 and women.

So, with just four days left to campaign, it was no surprise when the Liberals organized a rally with a group of leading businesswomen at the campaign office of party leader Gordon Campbell on Friday morning, seeking to shore up a weak area of support.

Meanwhile, B.C. NDP Leader Carole James spent Friday seeking votes from bus drivers, city workers and other unionized groups in more than a dozen ridings with tight races across Metro Vancouver.

The Angus Reid poll suggested the B.C. NDP trails the B.C. Liberals by just four per cent in Metro Vancouver among decided voters, but the party enjoys a nine-point lead on Vancouver Island and three-point lead in the southern Interior.

The poll also suggested Campbell had a significant 13-point lead over James when voters where asked which leader would make the best premier for B.C.

But 58 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that Gordon Campbell was patronizing, likely influenced by his response to James during the televised debate that leading the province was "a big job."

Polls yield different results

The Angus Reid poll was conducted May 5 and May 6 by an online survey of 1,013 randomly selected people from a representative group and has a margin of error of 3.1 per cent 19 times out of 20, the pollster said.

The results painted a far different picture from a separate telephone poll released Thursday by another pollster that suggested the B.C. Liberals have a nine-percentage-point lead over the NDP in the run-up to next Tuesday's provincial election.

The Mustel Research Group asked voters, "If a provincial election were being held tomorrow, which party's candidate would you support?"

The results suggest that among decided voters, the B.C. Liberals have 47 per cent support, the NDP has 38 per cent support, the Green Party of B.C. has 12 per cent support and the B.C. Conservatives have three per cent support.

Previously, polling experts have suggested that telephone polls and controlled online surveys get different results because many younger people, who are more likely to support the NDP, are unlikely to have a home telephone but more likely to participate online.

James was philosophical about the polls when asked Friday morning.

"The real poll is election day," she said. "It's going to be a close night, and it's important for people to recognize that their vote can make a difference."