Canada: A Duel of Images

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From the way Canada's public opinion polls have seesawed for more than a year, it is apparent that voters are quite unsettled about the party, and leader, they support. When Mulroney was chosen to head the Conservative Party it enjoyed a comfortable lead of 55% to 27% over the Liberals in the polls. By the time the Liberals held their convention last June, the polls put the Liberals out in front of the Conservatives by 48% to 39%. The latest Gallup survey shows the Conservatives back in the lead with 46% to 32%. New Democrat Broadbent, who could serve as a powerbroker should either of the two major parties fail to win a decisive majority, did particularly well in the poll, improving his standing by seven points, to 18%.

In an attempt to revive his campaign, Turner has dismissed his manager and hired Keith Davey, who engineered Trudeau's last two re-election victories. Shedding blazer, tie and but-toned-down image, the Prime Minister was photographed dancing with his wife to the rock sound of Doug and the Slugs at a Vancouver youth rally last week. But it was too soon to tell whether the new image would be enough to help Turner catch Mulroney. —By John Kohan.

Reported by Marcia Gauger/Toronto