MONTREAL: Poll results released late Monday showed the leftist New Democratic Party making a "dramatic rise," cutting into the Conservatives' lead a week before the federal election.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservatives had the support of 33.7 percent of those surveyed, compared to 28 percent for the NDP, according to the Ekos Politics poll.
The main opposition Liberal Party, which ruled for most of the last century, was the choice of 23.7 percent of the 3,000 respondents polled over the Easter weekend. The margin of error is 1.8 percent.
The NDP has gained support from all over the country.
"We have seen almost from day one a slow, steady and now a dramatic rise where the NDP has gone from 14 points in a pre-writ poll to 28 points," pollster Frank Graves said.
"That is a doubling -- I've never seen anything close to that," he added.
Leader Jack Layton's perceived strong performance during the national debates and on the campaign trail is widely seen as a key reason for the NDP's surge.
"They like his positive style, funny disposition, courageous demeanor with his cane and getting out there talking about the average guy. I think that's really working," Graves said in a statement.
After the Liberals, led by Michael Ignatieff, the Greens took 7.2 percent of those surveyed, while 6.2 percent chose Bloc Quebecois.
Ekos projects that the NDP could win up to 100 of the 308 seats in the House of Commons, compared to 131 for the Conservatives.
"It's hard to imagine a 130-seat diminished Harper government would be able to hold on to power against a clear majority of seats and a major advantage in popular support for the NDP and the Liberals," Graves said in his statement.
"The idea that you could have a Jack Layton-led coalition sounds preposterous, but that's what the numbers suggest."
An Ipsos Reid poll published last Thursday gave the Tories a strong lead -- 43 percent of those surveyed, followed by the NDP with 24 percent and the Liberals with 21 percent.
It was the first time in 20 years that the NDP polled ahead of the centrist Liberals.
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