OTTAWA–Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has fallen slightly behind Prime Minister Stephen Harper as the person Canadians think is best to lead the country, a new poll has found.

A Toronto Star/Angus Reid survey shows 27 per cent of Canadians think Harper is the best choice for prime minister, with 24 per cent preferring Ignatieff.

Last month, the two leaders were in a virtual tie, with Ignatieff slightly ahead at 28 per cent compared with Harper at 27 per cent nationally.

New Democratic Party Leader Jack Layton was the choice of 12 per cent of respondents, up two percentage points from last month. Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe and Green Leader Elizabeth May remained in the single digits, at 3 per cent and 2 per cent respectively.

Conservatives now enjoy a higher level of national popularity than they did during the last federal election, but most of the support is coming from traditional strongholds such as Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The Conservatives are at 39 per cent support nationally, compared with 30 per cent for the Liberals, 17 per cent for the NDP, 9 per cent for the Bloc and 5 per cent for the Greens. In the Oct. 14 election, the Tories garnered 37.6 per cent of the vote. In Ontario, the Conservatives are at 42 per cent support, just two percentage points ahead of the Liberals. The NDP is at 12 per cent and the Greens at 5 per cent.

The Liberals are the second choice for Quebec, with 25 per cent compared with 37 per cent for the Bloc, and in British Columbia the Conservatives are at 35 per cent, with the Liberals and NDP in a virtual tie for second place at 29 and 28 per cent respectively.

"(The Tories) might be at 39 per cent (nationally) and that might suggest that they're on the verge of forming a majority government. However, when we look at the findings from the specific areas, it's not as easy as it seems," said Mario Canseco, vice-president of the polling company Angus Reid Strategies.

Only 20 per cent of respondents said Ignatieff could manage the economy effectively, compared with 34 per cent for Harper.

One quarter of respondents said their opinion of Ignatieff had improved since last month, while 41 per cent of respondents said their opinion of Harper had worsened over the past month.

The online survey polled 1,000 adult Canadians on Wednesday and Thursday. The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.