Instead they adeptly swung the province behind Iyad Allawi, a secular Shia, helping to secure him the biggest share of the national vote.

ECONOMIST: Iraq��s tribes may hold the balance of power

The NDP's opportunity may eventually come from being everything the Conservatives are not: its supporters are younger, more secular and tend to be single and less economically secure, according to Frank Graves, a pollster.

ECONOMIST: Canada��s opposition

In order to secure a majority, he argues, the Islamists need to form alliances with secular movements.

ECONOMIST: Not just coercion, sham democracy too