A new survey suggests Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberals are well placed if they end up losing a confidence vote this fall, seen as the party best able to care for Canadians during the COVID-19 pandemic and to get the economy back on its feet.

Respondents to the online survey, conducted by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies, were split about the prospect of a federal election this fall, with 42 per cent opposed to the idea and 38 per cent in favour.

But if there were an election today, 38 per cent of decided voters said they'd support the Liberals, compared to 30 per cent for the Conservatives, 18 per cent for the NDP and six per cent for the Greens; the Bloc Quebecois were at 33 per cent in Quebec, virtually tied with the Liberals at 32 per cent.

When asked specifically which party would earn their vote should Erin O'Toole be at the helm of the Conservatives, Liberal support actually bumped up one point while Conservative support dropped to 27 per cent.

Respondents rated Trudeau as the most decisive, intelligent, caring and charismatic leader on offer and the best leader to get the economy back on track, manage the pandemic-induced, super-sized deficit, care for Canadians and keep them safe from a second wave of the pandemic.

The online survey of 1,516 adult Canadians was conducted Aug. 21-23; it cannot be assigned a margin of error because internet-based polls are not considered random samples.