1. The NDP have a well produced ad up on their site which they are asking donations for to air. ABCer picks up the many obvious contradictions in their plea to air it.

2. Martha Hall Findlay has been appointed in Willowdale. I’m not principally opposed to appointments (of qualified people), but it seems to me like Martha could have won the nomination herself.

3. Bill Blaikie has announced he’s calling it quits. His riding has been strongly NDP in the past but it just might be in play now. It kind of sucks for the NDP to lose Bill Blaikie while Pat Martin stays around.

4. Closer to home, Anne McLellan’s old riding, Edmonton Centre will be having their nomination meeting next week. Running for that one are Nicole Martel, Don Padgett, and Jim Wachowich. The other hotly contested one is Edmonton Strathcona which now appears to be between Toeffal Chowdry and Claudette Roy (who would make a very strong candidate given her background). Apologies to the prospective candidates for butchering the spelling of at least half of those names, I’m sure.

5. Looks like those out West will need to scour US sites on the net for early election results again next time, as the Supreme Court upholds the publication ban.

6. Ed Stelmach has already flip-flopped on his hypothetical support of the new equalization formula. Best line of the article?

[PC spokesperson Tom] Olsen said he wasn’t “sure what [Finance] Minister Oberg was talking about.”

7. People are still all a tizzy over Mario Dumont’s debate stunt. Apparently 1.7 million people watched the debate which, considering Quebec’s population, is quite remarkable.