A meaningful endorsement

The Libs continue to trot out Buzz Hargrove and his increasingly-incoherent semi-endorsement as reason to believe they're winning momentum on the left. Hargrove's bizarre outburst today even forced Martin into the position of defending Harper at the expense of whatever credibility he had left.

But with a lot less fanfare, the NDP has won a surprising endorsement based on principle rather than lust for power:

The leader of the Nova Scotia Green Party, Michael Oddy, is sold on the idea of switching allegiances and is urging Green Party members to vote NDP.

"We're in a situation where climate change is running amok and therefore we need to do something soon, and we're going to need some NDP MPs who are going to be holding these guys accountable," said Oddy, who ran federally for the Green Party in 2000 and 2004.

Oddy said the federal Green Party is now more right-wing than the Conservative party on many issues, and that's why he has abandoned it.

Keep in mind just how uncertain Atlantic Canada's voting outlook is at the moment. With so much still up in the air, Oddy's endorsement could provide just the push needed to win some close ridings for the NDP if even a small number of current Green voters are persuaded to shift. And unlike the Libs' star endorsement today, Oddy's message is one that Layton can wear with pride rather than embarrassment.