The federal Conservatives and the NDP are in a statistical dead heat among committed Canadian voters, a new Nanos poll suggests.


Among the committed voters polled, 33.6 per cent of respondents indicated their preference was the NDP, while the Conservatives had 33.5 per cent support.


Nik Nanos, president of the polling firm, pointed out that this is the first time in its tracking history that the NDP has numerically surpassed the Conservatives — albeit by 0.1 percentage points. "The research suggests that there is no significant negative blowback by Thomas Mulcair's comments on the oilsands," he said.


The Liberal Party secured 24.9 per cent of respondents, the Bloc Québécois had 3.4 per cent support and the Green Party trailed with 2.4 per cent.


Survey respondents were asked to rank their top two party preferences.


The Nanos telephone survey was conducted between May 26 and May 31 on a random sample of 1,201 respondents with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points 19 times out of 20. For the 1,006 committed voters, the margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points 19 times out of 20.


Harper tops leadership


Conservative Leader Stephen Harper outranks his counterparts as the most trustworthy federal leader, beating NDP Leader Tom Mulcair and interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae, the same poll suggests.


When asked to select which leader they would best describe as the most trustworthy, 22.9 per cent of respondents chose Harper. Next up was "None of them," which was selected by 17.2 per cent of respondents.


Mulcair was selected by 15.5 per cent of respondents, while Rae was named by 10.8 per cent. Green Party Leader Elizabeth May earned 8.3 per cent support.


One in five respondents, 23.5 per cent, remained undecided.


Health care and jobs most important issues


Meanwhile, health care and the economy top the list of important issues for Canadians, the poll suggests.


When asked to identify their most important national issue of concern, 22.5 per cent of respondents named health care, while 21.2 per cent specified jobs or the economy.


Education came in third place with 6.9 per cent of the respondents naming it the top issue, while concerns over the environment and high taxes rounded out the list with 6.2 per cent and 4.8 per cent, respectively.


Loading Slideshow...

  • Best MPs On Twitter

    Here's our totally unscientific look at which Canadian politicians are making the best use of Twitter. (CP)

  • 14. Rona Ambrose

    Tory ministers dominated our <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/09/worst-mps-twitter-canada_n_1504199.html?ref=canada-politics" target="_hplink">worst MPs on Twitter list</a>, but <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/MinRonaAmbrose" target="_hplink">Rona Ambrose</a> is an exception to the rule. While she could stand to pick up a few more followers, Ambrose is on the right track, heavily peppering her feed with retweets. She also responds to journalists, a sure sign of a strong political account. (CP)

  • 13. Marc Garneau

    Besides tweeting at a furious pace, former astronaut and current Liberal MP <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/MarcGarneau" target="_hplink">Marc Garneau</a> can be seen regularly carrying on conversations with other users. Nothing warms our hearts more than to see one of our politicians engaging with Canadians. (CP)

  • 12. Peter Julian

    NDP MP <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/mpjulian" target="_hplink">Peter Julian</a> is active, interesting and engaged. Good number of photos as well. (CP)

  • 11. Denis Coderre

    With nearly 60,000 followers, <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/DenisCoderre" target="_hplink">Denis Coderre</a> is one of the most popular Canadian MPs on Twitter. He responds to users, retweets news and generally keeps things lively and diverse. And although most of his tweets are in French, he's not afraid of an English post from time to time. (CP)

  • 10. Carolyn Bennett

    Liberal MP <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Carolyn_Bennett" target="_hplink">Carolyn Bennett</a> has more than 7,000 tweets, a sure sign of a Twitter addict. She also has been known to <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Carolyn_Bennett/media/slideshow?url=http%3A%2F%2Fyfrog.com%2Fnyvsfevj" target="_hplink">tweets photos of her dinner</a>, a sure sign she stays connected at all times. (CP)

  • 9. Olivia Chow

    With more than 17,000 followers, Olivia Chow doesn't need our help. But we love her tweets, especially the funny ones. This <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/oliviachow/status/198021722232979457" target="_hplink">Rob Ford zinger stands out</a>: "Dear journalists, the lilac tree in front of my #Toronto house is in bloom, come and take a photo by the fence, I won't call 911." (CP)

  • 8. James Moore

    Another Tory minister who bucks his party's Twitter trend is <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/JamesMoore_org" target="_hplink">James Moore</a>. His account shows all the usual signs of engagement, but to be perfectly honest it was the <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/JamesMoore_org/media/grid" target="_hplink">cute photos</a> of his <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/JamesMoore_org/media/slideshow?url=pic.twitter.com%2FrFgZ2LPR" target="_hplink">two dogs</a> that secured his spot on the list. (CP)

  • 7. Megan Leslie

    NDP MP <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/meganlesliemp" target="_hplink">Megan Leslie</a> has one of the most active accounts in Parliament. Our favourite tweet in recent months? "Finally found a parking spot in Whitehorse. No need to call Bev Oda's driver. http://yfrog.com/nwtxmtzj" (CP)

  • 6. Peggy Nash

    Unlike <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/09/worst-mps-twitter-canada_n_1504199.html?ref=canada-politics" target="_hplink">Thomas Mulcair, who has stopped tweeting</a> since the end of the NDP leadership contest, <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/PeggyNashNDP" target="_hplink">Peggy Nash</a> continues to post up a storm. Her appearance on this list also has a lot to do with her <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/PeggyNashNDP/status/197057876865454081" target="_hplink">recent allusion to the cartoon "South Park."</a> (CP)

  • 5. Justin Trudeau

    What can you say about <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/JUSTINPJTRUDEAU" target="_hplink">Justin Trudeau</a>? He's the rock star of Canadian politics and his Twitter stats show it. More than 130,000 followers and a verified check mark -- the surest sign of an online celeb. And while <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/03/13/justin-trudeau-blackberry_n_1342509.html" target="_hplink">HuffPost got into a minor tiff with Trudeau over a tweet</a> he sent out earlier this year about his BlackBerry, we're still big fans of the Liberal MP's stream. What other Canadian politician would have the guts to tweet a photo like <a href="http://twitpic.com/3aqlx9" target="_hplink">this</a>. (CP)

  • 4. Jason Kenney

    <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/kenneyjason" target="_hplink">Jason Kenney's Twitter stream</a> often resembles a travel journal. The Immigration Minister spends a lot of time travelling the country and it shows in his feed and photos. Something else we've learned from following Kenney? <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/kenneyjason/media/grid" target="_hplink">He loves purple ties</a>. (CP)

  • 3. Tony Clement

    Alright, we know we already put <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/tonyclementcpc" target="_hplink">Tony Clement</a> on our <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/09/worst-mps-twitter-canada_n_1504199.html?ref=canada-politics" target="_hplink">worst MPs on Twitter list</a>, but we do have a love hate relationship with the Tory minister. While his tweets have grown less interesting since <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/01/10/tony-clement-jackass-twitter_n_1196261.html" target="_hplink">Jackass-Gate</a>, Clement is still miles ahead of most MPs when it comes to using social media. No wonder he's been<a href="http://www.canada.com/news/Tony+Clement+vows+innovative+open+government+critics+point+poor+record/5940420/story.html" target="_hplink"> tasked with leading the Conservatives' Open Government initiative</a> to put more federal info online. (CP)

  • 2. Bob Rae

    'Interim' Liberal Leader Bob Rae may not have captured his party's permanent top job yet, but he definitely hold the attention of his Twitter followers. All 26,000 of them. He gets in on <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/bobraeMP/media/slideshow?url=http%3A%2F%2Fyfrog.com%2Fh03w0bmj" target="_hplink">photo meme action</a> and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/12/14/bob-rae-twitter-bs-young-liberals_n_1149155.html" target="_hplink">isn't afraid to use colourful language</a>. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/05/09/worst-mps-twitter-canada_n_1504199.html?ref=canada-politics" target="_hplink">Compared to the accounts of fellow leaders Thomas Mulcair and Stephen Harper</a>, an absolute gem. (CP)

  • 1. Elizabeth May

    She may be the leader of the smallest party in Parliament, but <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/elizabethmay" target="_hplink">Elizabeth May</a> punches way above her weight online. The Green Party leader has nearly 40,000 followers, roughly triple the count held by <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/thomasmulcair" target="_hplink">Thomas Mulcair</a>. How did she become such a digital success? One word: engagement. May's stream shows consistent interaction with followers and journalists. The leaders of the larger parties could learn a thing or two from this plucky underdog. (CP)