Harper Knows Best

Stephen Harper was back in Atlantic Canada today. In Yarmouth. At first I thought this was odd, as anyone who knows Nova Scotia (or has ever looked at a map of the East Coast) will also know that Yarmouth isn't on the way to anywhere (in Canada), and just barely has an airport. So I checked out the results of the 2006 election:

• Robert Thibault (L): 17 734 Votes
• Greg Kerr (C) 17 222
• Arthur Bull (ND) 8512 Votes
• Matt Granger (G)1040
• Ken Griffiths (I) 682

512 votes is not a big win. Its the difference of a couple dozen lawn signs, as the Toby from the West Wing would say. The math geek in me also really wants to make sure everyone knows that 512=2^9, but that's beside the point. This was the closest riding in Nova Scotia in the 2006 election. Both Thibault and Kerr are running again, but Thibault may be weakened by some bad press he earned from a few ageist and sexist remarks.

So, the point is, Harper is incredibly smart, and incredibly tactical. He knows another campaign stop in Halifax isn't worth his time. Not to say the other leaders aren't operating the same way, but its easier to disguise it when your not travelling to the Middle of Nowheres, NS.