Elections in Canada used to be a bit of a sprint, the last five averaging just under six weeks from start to finish. Candidates now face an 11-week marathon after Stephen Harper, Canada’s Conservative prime minister, visited the governor general August 2nd to officially launch the campaign for the October 19th vote.

It is not auspicious timing for the ruling Conservatives, who lag the left-leaning New Democratic Party in the polls and whose claim of being the best economic stewards is looking tattered with the economy contracting for the first five months of the year. But the government was largely bound to the October date by its own fixed-date election law. The only thing the prime minister had to play with was the length of the campaign.

Firing the starting gun early has several advantages. It will strain the financial resources of the opposition NDP and third-party Liberals, who trail the Conservatives in fundraising. Strict spending limits during the official campaign will effectively mute third-party groups like unions, who have been running anti-Harper ads. The prime minister, a seasoned campaigner with four elections as leader under his belt, may also be counting on missteps from the NDP’s leader Thomas Mulcair and Justin Trudeau of the centrist Liberals, who have not led their parties into an election before.

Canada’s first-past-the-post system means Mr Harper could still win enough of the 338 seats in the Westminster-style parliament to secure a rare fourth consecutive term in government. The opposition vote is split between two large and several minor parties. The message emblazoned on the Conservative tour bus -- Safer Canada/Stronger Economy -- need only resonate with about 40% of voters for victory to be assured.

Yet Canadians’ eagerness for change will work against the government and give an extra push to the NDP, who for the first time has a decent chance of winning, and the Liberals, who governed for most of the last century. Mr Mulcair and Mr Trudeau gave oddly similar statements in reaction to the election call, with help for middle-class families figuring prominently. Their challenge will be to differentiate their parties in the minds of voters.

The unusually long campaign means there is plenty of time for surprises and for laggards to find a second wind. The economy is expected to recover in the second half of the year. Any terrorist incident would refocus Canadians on security. Each of the five debates among leaders (the first is August 6th) could provide a turning point. From the vantage point of 11 weeks out the race is too close to call.