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Canadians continue to have mixed feelings about Stephen Harper even as they grow more comfortable with the direction he is taking their county.

A new survey conducted in mid-August for The Globe and Mail and CTV by The Strategic Counsel suggests the Conservatives and the Liberals remain in a popularity deadlock with each party being named as the first choice of 33 per cent of respondents.

But as pollsters Peter Donolo and Tim Woolstencroft write in today's Globe: "Don't let the neck-and-neck party standings fool you. After a year and a half in office, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has built up some impressive political capital.

"Nearly six out of 10 Canadians think the country is on the right track. Even if he's not setting Canadians' hearts aflame, most have a neutral-to-positive impression of Mr. Harper. He's seen as a decisive leader. A majority believe he's kept his promises. And most Canadians trust him to do the right thing for the country.

Does that mean we can expect a majority Conservative government when the dust settles on the next federal election? And who does Mr. Harper need to court to make that happen?

Mr. Donolo is joining us today from 2-3 p.m. EDT to take your questions on the poll.

Join the Conversation by submitting a question or comment . Your questions and Mr. Donolo's answers will appear at the bottom of this page.

Mr. Donolo was director of communications for Prime Minister Jean Chrétien from 1993 to 1999.

He oversaw communications strategies for a number of the most important government initiatives and most contentious political and public policy issues of that decade and also directed the prime minister's personal communications.

He is now a partner with The Strategic Counsel, one of Canada's most respected market research and strategic communications consultants.

Editor's Note: globeandmail.com editors will read and allow or reject each question/comment. Comments/questions may be edited for length or clarity. HTML is not allowed. We will not publish questions/comments that include personal attacks on participants in these discussions, that make false or unsubstantiated allegations, that purport to quote people or reports where the purported quote or fact cannot be easily verified, or questions/comments that include vulgar language or libellous statements. Preference will be given to readers who submit questions/comments using their full name and home town, rather than a pseudonym.

Christine Diemert, globeandmail.com: Mr. Donolo, thanks for joining us this afternoon to discuss federal politics and the most recent Globe and Mail/CTV Strategic Counsel poll. Since we've had a lot of comments and questions posted already, I'll get right to the discussion.

Paula Gaul from Rossland Canada writes: I believe that for the most part, Mr. Harper is doing the right things for the country, and I hope that he does win a majority. This may seem shallow, but he still strikes a lot of people as a bit cold.

Do you think that he can get outside and go for walks every day like the Prime Minister of Australia does — get a bit of a colour on his face, stay healthy and fight off the weight gain? I know it's a small thing, but that stuff really does matter, and it could make him seem more approachable.

Peter Donolo: There's no question that appearances matter. But what matters more, I think, is authenticity.

If Mr. Harper — or any other politician — tries to behave in a way that the public feels is too contrived, or synthetic, the public will sense it.

Moreover, let's not underestimate the public. They care about substance, not just style. Mr. Harper needs also to assuage the substantive concerns that potential voters still have.

Paul Faulkenham from Canada writes: I'd hate to think that one day Stephen Harper will lead this country, Canada to God knows where. Will we become the 53rd state of the United States as Harper seems to be more of a yes man to the United States than was Paul Martin. I have no doubt that there were things that went on behind the scenes of general Politics that we Canadians never knew about, but that being said at least Paul Martin knew that the word No existed in the English dictionary.

I'm afraid that Mr. Harper will forget that we Canadians are a proud lot and that most of us do know how to say no. I'm not a naysayer to the American Government but if it had of been up to Mr. Harper we would have been far more involved with the Americans in their war efforts with various countries and as a proud Canadian I don't think we need the hassles of war. Do you? It's bad enough that we are helping out now in foreign lands, buy hey, enough is enough.

Peter Donolo: There's no question that a majority of Canadians are very sensitive on the subject on Canadian independence from the US. That's why being perceived as being too close with an American President — especially one as unpopular among Canadians as Mr. Bush — can be politically dangerous for a Canadian government.

It's important to note that demonstrating Canada's independence and differentiating ourselves from the US don't need to descend into acts of blatant or cheap anti-Americanism.

For example, prime minister Jean Chrétien got along very well with Bill Clinton. That said, staking out an opposing position from the Clinton administration by championing an international treaty to ban land mines was smart politics, as well as solid policy - it showed a Canadian government marching to its own drum.

The same applies to prime minister Brian Mulroney's aggressive opposition to apartheid in South Africa in the 1980s. Mr. Mulroney was very closely aligned with then-US President Ronald Reagan, who was in the opposite camp on the issue. By tacking a different course on this particular issue, Mr. Mulroney was able to demonstrate an independence that many Canadians wanted and expected from Ottawa.

G G from Canada writes: Don't let the neck and neck poll standings fool you' is an understatement if I ever heard one. When it comes time to vote the Liberals are going to be buried - they have currently been cremated.

Peter Donolo: It's a little premature to predict the outcome of the next election.

Our poll suggests a number of steps that Mr. Harper can take to try and win over soft Liberal voters.

But the Liberals also have opportunities to augment their vote base. For example, negative attitudes toward Mr. Harper are deepest and most entrenched among NDP voters - who also told us they had a higher propensity to switch votes. What's more, these voters overwhelmingly pick the Liberals as their second choice. The same is true — to a greater or lesser degree — for Green voters.

So if the Liberals can effectively polarize the choice — convincing these voters that they are the best way to get rid of Mr. Harper and his government, they could benefit considerably.

The problem for the Liberals is that they will be fighting on two fronts. While they're trying to win over those NDP and Green voters, Mr. Harper will be doing the same thing with their vote.

Dan Green from Toronto Canada writes: I am convinced, regardless of who was prime minister, Canadians prefer a minority government.

Peter Donolo: That's an interesting thesis. A number of commentators have written about the moderating effect a minority has on governments.

We didn't ask about it in this survey. Though, we did in April. And the results were interesting. Forty five per cent didn't think it would make any difference to them whether Mr. Harper had a majority, and it was essentially a saw off between those in the rest of the population who thought a majority would be a good or bad thing.

Of course, that's absent an election campaign focused on the issue. But I think it's a good reminder that those of us more closely focused on the day-to-day politics may make a bigger deal about the whole majority/minority issue than does the general public.

Adam Berel Wetstein from Toronto Canada writes: Why wasn't the biggest difference addressed: gender split on Harper? I have seen polls that except in Alberta, Harper trails Dion by fifteen per cent. Maybe having two guys interpret a poll just made them miss this critical difference.

Peter Donolo: In terms of party support, there is indeed a gender gap.

Conservative support skews more toward men than women. In fact in its coverage last month of our July poll on party standings, The Globe and Mail outlined the Conservatives' lower levels of support among women.

That said, on the questions we asked this month about Mr. Harper's personal characteristics, the attitudes of women respondents were not as dramatically different as those of men. They were about as likely to describe Mr. Harper as "controlling" as were male respondents, and actually somewhat less likely to describe him as "partisan."

Maureen Haslehurst from Courtenay Canada writes: Mr. Harper appears to be a worthy strategist. What makes me nervous is his shoot from the hip mentality. This behaviour is evident with his co-authoring of the Alberta firewall letter in 2001 suggesting the Federal government was aggressive and hostile, his letter to the United States apologizing on behalf of all Canadians for not participating in the Iraq war and finally his statement as opposition leader that greenhouse gases were in fact the breath of life. He later backtracked from these missteps but what will be his knee jerk reaction to a future situation which could leave our country in peril?

Peter Donolo: There's no question this is concern — broadly speaking — that is shared by other Canadians and is inhibiting their support.

The legacy of statements like these is one reason so many believe he "does whatever George Bush wants", or is too controlling or right wing. By now the risks of striking such a tone should be clear to Mr. Harper. And if he wants to broaden his vote base, he needs to keep it in check.

Z S from Montreal Canada writes: Hi Mr. Donolo, Thank you very much for your coming to this conversation. I read the 'The Harper Paradox' in the globe and mail today. The interpretation of survey data isn't fully convincing. The main conflictive point is that majority of Canadians think the country is on the right track but the PM still doesn't win the majority of Canadian hearts. As we know, data is fixed.

Interpretation is flexible. People can argue that the country is on the right track because the minority government under checking of opposition but Canadians still don't trust the PM. The second unconvinced point is Liberal voter shifting. According to experience of past two federal elections, liberal voters and NDP voters often shift between these parties, some may be protest voting, some may be strategic voting.

Fewer liberal voters go to the conservative side. The author seems not to mention this point. What do you think? Thank you.

Peter Donolo: You're right that there are many factors that contribute to the sense that the country is on the right track. Though, I'm not sure an appreciation for the fact that we have a minority parliament is one of them.

I would think the state of the economy is a contributor — especially with a 6-per-cent unemployment rate. It's worth noting, however, that these strong economic conditions existed two years ago, but that didn't keep Quebec respondents at the time from being pessimistic about the direction of the country — at the time fewer than 30 per cent felt Canada was on the right track. Today the number is closer to 60.

In terms of Liberal-NDP switching, two points. One: the good news for the Liberals is that the percentage of NDP voters open to switching is large and growing — and they overwhelmingly opt for the Liberals as their second choice.

Here's point number two, the bad news. The percentage of Liberals who say they would change their vote is growing too. It's up to almost half the Liberal column. And here's the rub: unlike the last election, when they would likely opt NDP before voting Conservative, today they tell us they're just as likely to go Conservative as NDP.

Emperor Joshua Norton from Toronto Canada writes: The polls continue to suggest that Canadians are not impressed with either Harper or Dion — at least not enough to give them a majority government. How long will Harper or Dion try to hold onto power? Will they decide to step down for the good of the party or will their party have to force them out?

Peter Donolo: As it stands now, barring some kind of act of nature, both Mr. Harper and Mr. Dion will lead their parties into the next election. That's the way our party system works.

I would also beware of blanket statements about any given leader's electability. How many people wrote off Stephen Harper's chances in the months before the last election? Conversely, how many pundits in the early part of this decade were predicting Paul Martin would win a majority of historic proportions?

The fact is that election periods and campaigns are very important. They do two things: the focus the public's mind on choices and priorities, and they test the mettle of party leaders. Sometimes those leaders surprise by meeting or exceeding the test, and other times by flaming out. And the history of our elections has plenty of examples of both experiences.

John MacDougall from Iqaluit Canada writes: Yes, Harper is decisive. But so was Hitler. I'm sure Mr. Donolo doesn't admire Hitler. Could he be more specific as to why he likes Harper's decisiveness?

David Imrie from Winnipeg, MB writes: Stephen Harper fails to excite many people. How can the Liberals appear to look stronger? Dion is a very solid individual with similar ideas to your old boss, but how can he jump ahead of Harper, get rid of the NDP as a major political influence and win some votes in Quebec?

Peter Donolo: I clump these two questions together not because they have anything in common, but because they illustrate my point.

John's question (or, more accurately, statement) points out the polarizing, highly-charged reactions Mr. Harper brings out among some voters.

My old friend Dave Imrie asks how Mr. Dion can defeat Mr. Harper. One thing he has to do is to become the default choice for those who have this strong aversion to the Conservatives. Right now, he's not. Those votes are being shared with the NDP and Green Party, and to a lesser extent, the Bloc. If he wants to win, he can't afford to split or share those votes.

The Quebec issue is even dicier. The fact is that Mr. Harper has turned some heads in Quebec. Whether it's recognizing Quebec as a "nation" or being perceived to correct the so-called fiscal imbalance, he's made some inroads — particularly outside Montreal. And by the way, here the right track/wrong trtack turnaround is important.

Mr. Dion needs to focus on the areas where Quebeckers are much less comfortable with Mr. Harper: Kyoto, Afghanistan, Canada-US relations. Incidentally, these are issues that Mr. Harper kept a million miles away from during his Quebec byelection foray over the weekend. That is pretty strong proof of how vulnerable he feels they make him.

Rita Pollock from Canada writes: I'm not too happy with the Liberals or the conservatives. Both have ignored enhancing Universal Medicare and allowed private clinics to rise up instead of expanding the Public care.

Also, I am mystified why Canadians would think it was okay to increase our allowance of foreign ownership of our companies. With Stelco being bought by a US company and countless others now foreign owned, we wont have any control over our resources. A prime example is how much of our gas and oil is owned by others. Canadians and politicians say they want Canada to be a sovereign nation as they sell it off to the highest bidder. I think it is time to stop shareholders from selling us off for a few extra cents on the dollar while our country goes down the drain.

Peter Donolo: This head office "hollowing out" issue may be a real sleeper. Our polling shows that a large majority of Canadians - including a majority of Conservative voters are concerned about it. And a majority wants the government to do something about it. The problem, of course, is that there's no obvious answer or clear consensus about what that "something" ought to be.

The risk is that if this issue grows it can create a malaise that clouds people's sunny economic views. And for Mr. Harper, who is already suspected by many of being too pro-American, it would be particularly unhelpful development.

Christine Diemert, globeandmail.com: I'm afraid we've run out of time for our discussion. We had a lot of comments and questions and obviously people have plenty to say about their Prime Minister and his government. We're sorry if not everyone's question was answered, but it will surely not be the last time we have such conversations. Thanks Mr. Donolo for joining us.