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London, Ontario: Canada's ruling Conservative Party is set to win a federal election on Tuesday but will still have only a minority of seats in Parliament, according to two polls released on Saturday.
The Conservatives hold 127 of the 308 seats and had genuine hopes of capturing a majority when the campaign started a month ago. Since then, the global financial crisis struck, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper has struggled to persuade Canadians to give him a strong mandate to deal with the after-shocks.
An Ipsos-Reid poll for CanWest News put the Conservatives at 34 per cent, with the official opposition Liberals at 29 per cent and the left-leaning New Democrats at 19 per cent.
Under Canada's first-past-the-post electoral system, a party needs around 40 per cent of the vote to win a majority. This can slip as low as 38 per cent if the opposition is badly divided, as it is now.
Recovering ground
The election is the third in four years and, if the polls are accurate, will produce Canada's third successive minority government.
A Segma poll for La Presse said the Conservatives had 34.6 per cent public support, well ahead of the Liberals on 23 per cent and the New Democrats on 20.5 per cent.
Segma president Raynald Harvey said the Conservatives had bounced back from lows late last week after two televised leaders' debates, where Harper had little chance to shine.
EPA
Premier Colombian ballet marks 30th anniversary
Members of the Classic Ballet Colombian Institute (Incolballet, in Spanish), perform Carl Orff's 'Carmina Burana' at the Valley of the Pacific Conventions Centre in Cali, Colombia, as part of the 30th anniversary celebrations of Incolballet, one of the most important artistic institutions in the South American country.
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