TORONTO - Despite a disappointing election where candidates didn't see a "just reward'' for their efforts, Howard Hampton pledged to stay on as NDP leader and promised to hold the government accountable on key issues like child poverty and Ontario's shrinking manufacturing sector.

"I'm not going anywhere,'' Hampton told an audience of party faithful during a conciliatory speech at a meeting in downtown Toronto on Saturday.

Hampton also laid out his party's strategy for the coming months and hammered away at Dalton McGuinty's proposed $40 billion nuclear initiative, saying Ontario voters will turn against the plan once the true financial costs become clear.

"I think we're already seeing signs now with some of the refurbishments that if we start to go down that path, it's going to be horrendously expensive. It is the wrong policy option.''

Hampton added the NDP would continue to work from the party's historical "heart and soul'' by fighting for fairness and justice for people who struggle make ends meet.

Since the election that resulted in his party winning 10 seats _ a three-seat improvement 2003's results _ Hampton has kept a relatively low profile, with some speculation that he might step down as party leader.

But while provincial New Democrats were disappointed with October's results, the party doesn't blame Hampton, said Henry Jacek, a political science professor at McMaster University in Hamilton.

Jacek added the New Democrats are in a good position to influence the political agenda as Ontario continues to loose jobs in key economic sectors.

"People are going to become more and more sympathetic to the NDP because the party is normally very proactive when it comes to job losses in the manufacturing and forestry industry.''

"An economic downturn and they can suddenly become very powerful,'' said Jacek.

During his speech, Hampton also lamented his party's lack of advertising dollars in relation to the Conservatives and Liberals and blamed the disappointing election performance on the media, who he said ignored the real issues and remained fixated on the controversy surrounding funding for faith-based schools.

"This was a very frustrating election campaign for a lot of people,'' Hampton said, noting the turnout, which attracted less than 53 per cent of eligible voters.

"To even hope to compete in terms of the advertising budget with the Liberals and Conservatives, we would have needed another $4 million.''