New polls in the past couple days suggest that the era of Liberal dominance in Canada may be about to end, and in a very dramatic way. It could be that our favorite progressive land is about to have that light dimmed, as the potential winner could be Stephen Harper and his reactionary band of ex-Reformists from the Texas of the north, Alberta.
While most of us here in the USA focus on Alito, the cause of progressive politics in Canada may be on the verge of a major setback, as recent polls seem to suggest that the tarnishing of corruption from various scandals may very well cause the Liberals to be voted out, and hard.
current nationwide poll run by Montreal's "La Presse" and Toronto's "Star" newspapers :
Conservatives - 39.1%
Liberals - 26.8%
New Democrat - 16.2%
Bloc Quebecois - 12.6% (and in Quebec 52.4%)
Greens - 4.6%
Using a seat projector from Hill & Knowlton, these numbers, if they hold, would result in a new Parliament of (keep in mind, Canada is a first past the post system, like the UK) :
Conservatives : 159 (need 155 for absolute majority, gain of 59 seats)
Liberals : 59 (loss of 76 seats)
New Democrat : 26 (gain of 7)
Bloc Quebecois : 64 (gain of 10, and comprising all but 10 of Quebec's 75 seats in Parliament)
Other : 1
Canada has been a beacon of hope for many of us that a progressive body politic can be developed. Hopefully these polls do not hold, otherwise things are about to get a good deal darker in the Great White North.