In an election campaign that started off promising little change for Canadians in the House of Commons, the unexpected rise of the NDP has made the 2011 vote one to remember.

When parliament was dissolved in March, the NDP had a paltry 36 seats out of 308, but by the end of the short campaign period, the perennial third party looked like a real contender for the Loyal Opposition.

And while it seemed like a pipe dream, leader Jack Layton was gunning for the country's top office, beginning speeches with the phrase "as your prime minister ..." to wild applause from the party faithful.

He has reason to be optimistic. Poll after poll has shown the surprising climb of the NDP from a fourth-place party to a political heavyweight, capable of besting the Liberals and nipping at the Conservatives' tail.

Angus Reid Public Opinion pollster Mario Canseco says the turnaround for the New Democrats came during the English-language debates, when Layton made pointed attacks on his opponents without putting off his audience.

"He was indisputably the guy who did the best in that debate," Canseco said. "The debates helped Layton connect with a lot of people."

In comparison, Conservative leader Stephen Harper was "preaching to the choir," Canseco said.

He says Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff didn't do much better, coming off as too academic and a little bit patronizing.

"It was like he was trying to explain to a bunch of kids in second year at Harvard how government is run," Canseco said.

In the most recent Angus Reid Public Opinion poll, conducted on Thursday and Friday, the New Democrats had soared to 33-per-cent support from decided voters, just four points back from the Conservatives.

Angus Reid polls conducted throughout the election campaign showed the New Democrats making a remarkable comeback from support levels dipping well below 20 per cent in March.

In B.C., the NDP were making up ground fast on their Tory rivals polling at 39-per-cent support in the most recent Angus Reid poll, compared to the Conservatives' 42 per cent. Before parliament was dissolved, just nine of B.C.'s 36 seats in the House of Commons were held by New Democrats.

Layton's booming popularity seems to have driven the rush of voters to the NDP corner.

Canseco says that Layton has great charisma, and has been very successful reaching out to young voters in particular, with expert use of new media and Twitter and promises of funding for social programs.

"The message is that he's offering something that could be very different," Canseco said.

Canseco believes the NDP helped their case by running ads with positive messages, and featuring scenes of Layton connecting with everyday Canadians.

But it's the leader's image in Quebec that has really helped the party out.

"Quebec I think realized that, after many years of voting for the Bloc, they had nothing to show in return," Canseco said. "The Bloc really lost touch with that social democratic conscience."

News that Layton was found naked in a Toronto massage parlour during a 1996 raid by police isn't likely to affect the party's fortunes, according to Canseco.

"I don't think it's an issue. It's not related to anything they're offering," he said. "This phenomenon is not something that's going to go away because of something that happened a decade ago."

The success of the NDP in the polls has left the Liberals in the dust. The Grits were down to 19 per-cent support in Angus Reid polling by the end of last week, and trending downward.

Angus Reid Public Opinion claims a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 per cent, 19 times out of 20.