A pre-writ survey shows a tight race for the next federal election.

Amid speculation that the election will be called soon, new data from the Angus Reid Institute has the Liberals as the most likely to claim victory, but only by a slight margin.

The chances of a Justin Trudeau win sit at 33 per cent, with Erin O’Toole’s Conservatives trailing at 31. The NDP remains in third with 20%, then the Bloc Quebecois at 7, and the Green Party at 3 per cent.

The way the pandemic was handled was a strong point for the Liberal government, but as the country reopens just 19 per cent of voters identify COVID -19 as a top issue, down from 45 per cent in March.

The Liberals and the CPC lead the pack, however, their leaders have seen a drop in popularity. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh and Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet have seen a slight rise in popularity. Only nine per cent of Canadians strongly approve of Trudeau’s performance as Prime Minister while three in five Canadians say they have an unfavourable view of O’Toole.