Opportunity knocks

While there's ample reason to doubt the expected voting numbers among 18- to 24-year-olds suggested by this poll, the party numbers among a politically interested group of respondents offer some very interesting fodder for discussion:

Among young adults outside Quebec, the Liberals hold a slim lead with 28 per cent support. The NDP sits at 24 per cent and the Conservatives at 23 per cent. Eleven per cent of respondents plan to vote for the Green Party. Ten per cent are undecided.

In Quebec, 49 per cent of voters under age 25 intend to vote for the Bloc Québécois. The NDP has 18 per cent support and the Liberals 11 per cent. Eight per cent of respondents plan to vote for the Green Party and 7 per cent for the Conservatives. Five per cent are undecided.

The national numbers aren't all that surprising. But the NDP's 7-point lead over the Liberals in Quebec suggests that there's plenty of room for growth among younger voters, and even if a lot of those votes are protest-based now they could easily set down a base for future NDP gains. That potential is something that the NDP needs to highlight and build on to cement its status as a genuine national alternative to the Libs...even if it'll take another election or two for those votes to translate into seats.