NEW GLASGOW, N.S - Elizabeth May's brash effort to dislodge a Nova Scotia Conservative dynasty and get the first Green elected to Parliament ended in disappointment Tuesday, but the party did celebrate a surge in popular support under her leadership.
Despite a spirited effort, May ultimately failed in her bid to unseat Defence Minister Peter MacKay in Central Nova, a riding that has been in the MacKay family for decades.
Nationally, the Greens didn't win a seat. British Columbia MP Blair Wilson, who switched to the Greens this summer after getting elected as a Liberal in 2006, lost his seat to Conservative John Weston.
The bright spot for the Greens was their surge in popular support as, with almost all polls reporting results, they received more than 900,000 votes, or seven per cent of the votes cast. In the last election, the Greens won 664,000 votes, or 4.5 per cent of the total.
The party even made an impression in oil-rich Alberta, receiving nine per cent of the popular vote with most polls reporting results.
In Central Nova, MacKay singled out the Liberal and Green parties' plans to tax carbon emissions as a factor in the riding, which has a large rural population.
"It was certainly a prominent issue in this riding, and throughout Atlantic Canada it was very unpopular," he said.
"Putting up the cost of everything was not something that people on their doorsteps wanted to hear. ... This policy was not popular at all."
Bagpipers led May into her riding headquarters, where she said she was proud to "come in a close second," despite the fact that MacKay beat her by more than 5,600 votes.
"I can't say I'm overjoyed, but we ran a very strong campaign," she told the boisterous crowd.
After thanking her supporters, she promised she would stay in the riding and keep fighting in the next election.
"This is not an occasion for tears friends. This is a celebration of a job well done," said May, who received more than 12,500 votes in a riding that gave the Greens just 671 votes in 2006.
May previously lost in a relatively tight byelection in a riding in London, Ont., and decided to run in Central Nova this time because she wanted to be close to her family.
Liberal Leader Stephane Dion agreed not to run a candidate in Central Nova to give May a better chance against MacKay. In return, the Greens didn't contest Dion's seat in Quebec.
MacKay, who had also won the riding handily in the past four elections, is the son of Mulroney-era cabinet minister Elmer MacKay, who held the riding for years as well.
Political scientist Jim Bickerton said no matter where May decided to run, it would have been a political gamble because the Greens had nothing that could be considered a safe seat.
"Given that, is it better to run in a riding against an unbeatable candidate that no one expects you to beat and do fairly well, or potentially lose to a no name, which would be much worse for her?" said Bickerton, who teaches at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, N.S.
"She has personal reasons for wanting to be in the province with an elderly father here and she has a connection to the place."
He also argued that it might be better for May in building the party to remain outside the House of Commons, where she would be laden down with committee work.
"She's got loads of time (to build the party) because she's brought the Greens up to a level they've never had before," he added.
"I think the Greens are here to stay."
May often stole the spotlight during the national campaign, fighting her way into the leader's debate, despite resistance from Harper and the NDP.
Her spirited performance in the debate helped the party bounce up to 13 per cent in the polls, and a cross-country whistlestop tour aboard a train maintained her national profile.
May said she intends to stay on as leader, adding that under the party constitution she is permitted to remain in the job until 2010.
"My personal preference is to remain as leader and continue to be a voice for change because I think Canadians find my voice interesting and refreshing," she said.
She said she also plans to run in Central Nova again.
"I believe what I did was sensible and I intend to run here again."
