Well, it's the next day and things are more or less as they were. The Conservatives still don't have a majority, the Bloc still holds almost all the seats in Quebec, and the Liberals are still the official opposition.
So who won? In my opinion there were no real winners. Sure, there were small victories - the conservatives gained a few more seats and thus have a little more power, the NDP also gained some seats and and made history with their first seat in Quebec, and the green did very well in popular vote - but still have no seats.
The real story here though was who lost, and I don't mean the Liberals even though they had their worst turnout in the history of their party. Who really lost was Canadians. Not because nothing changed, and not because the conservatives are still in power, but because we had record low voter turnout. Our loss was our own fault, and we have nobody to blame but ourselves.
I still can't understand how almost half the population of Canada can't be bothered to get out and vote. The arguments of not knowing enough about each party are garbage, especially these days where their platforms are so easily viewable online, on TV, radio, or even just talking to other people. While our system is not perfect, we'll never have a true representation of Canadian values in the Parliament if people can't be bothered to be a part of the system.
This is an old and perhaps a boring, cliche argument, but it still pisses me off, and it's still a problem. Drop the apathy people, and do your civic duty next time we are sent to the polls. Stop bitching about how we are in another election and instead take pride in the fact that we have a system that allows for us to be in another election, and make a difference. Yes, every vote does count.