Conservative party candidate Stephen Harper has been elected Prime Minister of Canada over scandal-plagued, Bush-bashing incumbent, Liberal Paul Martin.

While it wasn't the blue tidal wave majority Harper had hoped for in the dying days of the 56-day campaign, it marked a major return from near extinction in 1993 when the Conservatives were left with two seats....Deputy Conservative Leader Peter MacKay said the Tories are chomping at the bit to get back to work, and said Canadians will be impressed with their talent. "This is very much a party of the future. It's more inclusive, it has more youth, more diversity than any party in the House of Commons," MacKay beamed last night shortly after being declared a winner for the fourth time in his Central Nova riding.

....Liberals gathered to mourn their loss at a Montreal hall last night, many saying they were relived they weren't wiped off the electoral map altogether, and pledging to rebuild their party into a stronger force. Senator Francis Fox, who advised Martin during the campaign, expressed surprise at Harper's ability to attract Quebec voters and win seats.

Harper, 46, becomes the first prime minister from outside Quebec in 27 years. He was elected leader of the Conservative Party in March 2004 after leading a merger of the Progressive Conservatives and Canadian Alliance. After growing up in Toronto, he worked as a computer analyst in the Alberta oilpatch before doing his BA and MA in economics from the University of Calgary.

After yesterday's elections his fellow Tories hold the largest bloc in parliament, but a minority overall.

Implementing his agenda will be a tricky balancing act. The Globe and Mail says if Harper wants more than one term, he'll have to keep his party's social conservative tendencies at least somewhat in check.

Which is desirable anyway. Fiscal, ethics and governance reforms are paramount. In broad terms at least, that's quite similar to a chunk of the U.S. national agenda. It's just that we've just got this one little extra thing on our plate that Mark Steyn has been thinking about a lot lately: preserving Western civilization.

TECHNORATI TAGS: CANADA, ELECTIONS, PAUL MARTIN, CONSERVATIVES, MARK STEYN