There are some real benefits to having dictatorial majority mandates; however, there is sometimes a conflict between effective government and representation. From a representative perspective I feel the most important thing influencing the NDP is what is happening to the Conservatives. I am a huge critic of the two party bipolar politics south of the border. I think there are real reasons for why politics devolves into a two party dynamic but I don't think it's healthy.
So why does the Conservative party matter so much to the NDP? Because frankly the Conservatives are a big tent that is non-representative of it's membership's views. Really, the united right is as divided as the NDP are from the Liberals. The presence of a second right-of-centre party would allow Canadians, and especially NDP voters to feel more free to vote with their hearts and feel represented in Parliament. The trouble with this four or five party system is that government effectiveness may be impacted because it would be harder to get anything done in a semi-permanent minority parliament.
The NDP in my opinion will never from government in Ottawa unless it is as leader in a minority coalition. So the Machiavellian thing for the NDP to do is to help form another right-of-centre party. On party would maybe be socially conservative, populist, de-centralist and small government. The other would be centralist, Nationalist,, pro-trade and big business, and fiscally conservative.
