Quote:But the split among progressives is better news for the Conservatives. There are many ridings across the country in which a big gain for the Greens will not win them the seat — but losses for the NDP and Liberals might put the Conservative candidate ahead.

The provincial elections in New Brunswick and P.E.I. are examples of how that can happen. In both cases, the Progressive Conservatives were able to form government despite losing vote share because the incumbent Liberals (as well as the NDP) lost much more.

• Canada's "New Democratic Party" would find most American Democrats to be to the right of their party. Bernie Saunders would be considered moderate in the NDP. They rarely get to form governments up here, and never have at the federal level.
  
• "Ridings" are what Canadians call electoral districts. (Apparently, the term is from the Old Norse word "þriðing". There's not much gerrymandering; the boundaries are drawn by bureaucrats, not politicians.)
  
• The Liberal Party is centrist or slightly-left-of-centre, depending on the province.
  
• Conservatives are exactly what it says on the tin. "Progressive Conservatives" are still conservatives, but at the provincial level instead of the federal level.