Some of you aren't going to like this...
I'm watching the early results of the election, and something just occurred to me - the best thing that could happen to Jack Layton and the NDP at this point is a Conservative majority. Why? Because then the Orange Team will have a full four years to convince voters that they are a real alternative and that they can function well as the official opposition.
From the Liberal perspective, a Conservative minority with NDP in opposition is a nightmare - allowing the NDP to prove they can function at that level will make it much harder for the Liberals to win in the future, because it will mean vote-splitting on the left is that much more likely. Thus, it's to their advantage to pounce on the NDP and force another election as soon as the NDP screw something up sufficiently. For that matter, I'm skeptical that the Liberals would team up with the NDP to form the government, unless they plan to betray Jack at the first opportunity. Again, they don't want voters to get comfortable with the idea that the NDP is anything other than an "also-ran".
You can be sure that the Liberal strategists are already trying to figure out how to get things to stick to the NDP.
From the Liberal perspective, a Conservative minority with NDP in opposition is a nightmare - allowing the NDP to prove they can function at that level will make it much harder for the Liberals to win in the future, because it will mean vote-splitting on the left is that much more likely. Thus, it's to their advantage to pounce on the NDP and force another election as soon as the NDP screw something up sufficiently. For that matter, I'm skeptical that the Liberals would team up with the NDP to form the government, unless they plan to betray Jack at the first opportunity. Again, they don't want voters to get comfortable with the idea that the NDP is anything other than an "also-ran".
You can be sure that the Liberal strategists are already trying to figure out how to get things to stick to the NDP.