If the numbers from the Liberal campaign in St. John’s East are right, then New Democratic Party incumbent Jack Harris is in serious trouble.
Asked if which candidate they would vote for, the 1,000 respondents to the IVR survey conducted over 48 hours late last week picked Harris by one point over his Liberal rival Nick Whalen.
This would be remarkable on a number of levels, not the least of which is that Whalen is a relative unknown in politics. Harris, by contrast, first got elected in 1987. Whalen was 15 at the time.
Harris is a likeable fellow and his appeal cuts across party lines. That broad appeal is why he has won the two federal elections he’s been in by sizeable margins: 74% of votes cast in 2008 and 71% in 2011. That second huge victory shows that the internal feud within the Conservatives had nothing to do with his victory in 2008.
