The British Columbia NDP are beating the Conservatives by two points in the popular vote, according to a poll conducted by Liaison Strategies on behalf of the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada. Liaison Strategies found the BC NDP would receive 40% of the vote if an election was held today. However, it said the Conservatives would finish a close second place (38%). “The race continues to narrow with a two-point lead for the BC NDP over the BC Conservatives,” said Liaison Strategies Principal David Valentin in a Monday press release.“Perhaps more worryingly for the NDP are that the regional numbers have tightened considerably.”After the Conservatives would be the Greens (10%). This was followed by United (9%) and another party (3%). “On Vancouver Island, the NDP are leading with 43% followed by the Greens (24%) and Conservatives (23%) effectively tied for second,” said Valentin. “Outside of Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island, it's the Conservatives who are leading by 15 points over the NDP (48-33).”He said United fares best in Metro Vancouver, where it garners 10%. In most of BC, he said it “looks like a two horse race.”Valentin concluded by saying with the race this close, it is “difficult to know with vote splits how this would all work out — but there's plenty of time to go until election day.”“For now the question is who can build momentum and break the deadlock as the parties look increasingly even in what is a very competitive election,” he said. BC Conservative Executive Director Angelo Isidorou said while it was great to see its momentum continue, the only poll that matters is election day. “We are working hard to defeat the NDP and we will not be satisfied until we form a big common sense Conservative majority on October 19th,” said Isidorou.This poll comes after the BC Conservatives announced on June 20 former Surrey mayor Linda Hepner will be its candidate in Surrey-Serpentine River. READ MORE: Former Surrey mayor to run for BC ConservativesHepner accused BC Premier David Eby of treating Surrey “like a second-class city.”“People are paying more taxes and getting fewer services in terms of schools, housing, healthcare, law enforcement, and everything else the government should do,” said Hepner. The poll was conducted using interactive voice response technology among 1,097 BC adults from June 26 to 27. It has a margin of error of +/- 2.96 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
