A new poll suggests that Liberal supporters prefer Mark Carney as their next leader over a field of potential candidates.

Polling firm Leger surveyed around 1,500 people over the weekend, asking who they think should replace Justin Trudeau as leader of the governing party.

The survey included a number of people who have dropped out of the race or decided not to run, including Anita Anand, Steve MacKinnon, Christy Clark and Fran莽ois-Philippe Champagne.

Carney had the support of 27 per cent of Liberal voters, while Chrystia Freeland was second with 21 per cent and Clark was a distant third at six per cent.

Carney and Freeland were almost tied among all of the poll鈥檚 respondents, with Freeland one point ahead at 14 per cent.

Neither Carney nor Freeland has officially entered the race yet, though both are expected to make announcements this week.

Most of the people surveyed 鈥� 46 per cent overall, and 30 per cent of Liberal voters 鈥� said they don鈥檛 know who the party鈥檚 next leader should be.

Meanwhile, the poll suggests most Canadians are concerned about the federal government鈥檚 ability to handle Canada-U.S. relations while the Liberals choose their next leader.

In all, 78 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about the government鈥檚 ability to manage the relationship with the incoming administration of Donald Trump.

Trump has vowed to impose 25 per cent tariffs on imports from Canada when he takes office on Jan. 20.

When he first made the tariff threat, Trump said it was in response to what he called Canada鈥檚 inaction on drugs and migrants crossing the shared border. The federal government subsequently laid out a $1.3-billion plan to beef up border security.

The federal cabinet is set to hold a two-day retreat, starting on inauguration day, to discuss measures to 鈥減rotect and defend Canadian interests,鈥� the Prime Minister鈥檚 Office said Tuesday.

Government House leader Karina Gould also plans to launch her campaign later this week, according to a Liberal source. The Leger poll put her support among both Liberals and all respondents at one per cent.

Chandra Arya, who was the first MP to officially announce a bid for the leadership, also received one per cent of overall support and three per cent support from Liberals.

Three other individuals Leger polled as possible replacements for Trudeau 鈥� cabinet ministers Anita Anand, Steve MacKinnon and Fran莽ois-Philippe Champagne 鈥� have decided in recent days not to enter the race.

Most of those polled 鈥� 46 per cent overall, and 30 per cent of Liberal voters 鈥� said they don鈥檛 know who the party鈥檚 next leader should be. Fourteen per cent of respondents selected 鈥渟omeone else鈥� as their preferred option.

Respondents were almost evenly split on when they think Canadians should head to the polls.

About a third of those surveyed, 32 per cent, said the next election should be in October 鈥� the date set out in the fixed election law 鈥� while 30 per cent said it should be held this spring and 29 per cent said a vote should happen now.

Support for an immediate election was highest among supporters of the Conservative party. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been loudly demanding for months that the Liberals call what he鈥檚 described as a 鈥渃arbon-tax election,鈥� and has ramped up those calls since Trudeau announced his plans to step down last week.

Most of the Liberal voters surveyed said they want to see the election happen in the fall, as did most NDP supporters.

People who plan to vote for the Bloc Qu茅b茅cois were more likely to say they want an election in the spring.

Trudeau has prorogued Parliament, putting the House of Commons on pause until March 24.

With all opposition parties lining up to topple Trudeau鈥檚 minority government with a non-confidence vote after that date, a spring election appears increasingly likely.

The poll does not include a margin of error because online surveys are not considered truly random samples.