On increased influence

Let's take a moment to challenge one of the more bizarre memes being pushed by Lib supporters to criticize the NDP for once again having the nerve to run a successful campaign - that being the theory that the NDP will somehow have less influence as the Official Opposition for the next for years than it did as the fourth party to date.

Keep in mind that Harper has seldom had any need to turn to the NDP for support even in a minority parliament, as both the Bloc and Libs regularly waved through budgets and confidence measures. And while the NDP managed to get some results (EI improvements in 2009 and a couple of budget baubles which weren't enough to justify supporting the Cons this year), the Cons have generally refused to even provide the perception of cooperation with any other party - making it particularly difficult to find common ground with the party most distant from it on the political spectrum.

So the NDP's ability to secure legislative gains with the balance of power has been severely limited due to both the Harper Cons' refusal to cooperate, and the fact that they've normally found willing supporters or accomplices without even having to pay attention to the NDP's position.

Meanwhile, the political scene with a Lib official opposition has been dominated by day-to-day scandalmongering rather than any real challenge to the Cons on values. Indeed, as pointed out during the campaign, the Libs have utterly neglected health care despite the fact that it's regularly at the top of voters' concerns. And that's to say nothing of their failure to raise awareness of poverty, First Nations issues, the environment (post-Dion) and other areas where the Cons have failed miserably.

Naturally, the NDP has tried to pick up the slack. But its questions later on in question period have mostly been ignored since they haven't reflected the preferred storyline of a clash between the two leading parties in Parliament.

Now, the NDP will get to set the agenda every day at the point when the media is paying the most attention. And so, we can expect the Cons to face far closer scrutiny - in the House of Commons and beyond - in the areas where their values are most obviously out of touch with Canadians.

Of course, it remains to be seen whether they'll actually change course as a result. But at the very least, an NDP official opposition can raise far more awareness of the gap between the Cons and the country they govern than the Libs ever bothered to do. And it's hard to see how that can be a negative outcome in the long run.