After a (painfully) long four-ballot race at the NDP convention yesterday, Mr. Thomas Mulcair has won the leadership. His win creates an interesting discussion for Canadian politics. After the embarrassing turnout for the Liberal party last summer, and the defeat of Michael Ignatieff in his own seat, there were questions about whether or not a merger between the NDP and the Liberals was on the horizon. This certainly caused some heated debate in my family, which is mostly split between Liberals and NDPs. My parents, who are die-hard and long-time Liberals, felt a little shocked and betrayed that their own children thought it might be the best option for the left to merge, and stop splitting the vote.
While that conversation seems to have been put on the backburner for a little while, yesterday’s convention brought those issues to the forefront. Mulcair is notoriously centrist in comparison to many of the other candidates for the NDP leadership – that was both his downfall and his saving grace at the convention. Today’s editorial in the Globe & Mail discusses this in relation to Mulcair’s future as leader of the party. The author argues that Mulcair will have to toe a fine line, by pleasing the moderates without alienating the left.
It will be interesting to see how a three-party race will play out in three years with the NDP potentially catering to a larger portion of the public.
It’s interesting that you have categorized the Liberals and NDP together as representing the left of the Canadian political spectrum. I am a Liberal supporter and have always considered myself to be a centrist, never falling to far one way without being pulled back. The Liberals have indeed fallen to the left further than before but I see the future with them regaining strength. As the Conservatives settle into their majority status, I’m sure their true blue stripe will show, thereby pulling them back to the right after their migration to the centre that caused the Liberals to move left in search of a platform. If anything, I don’t think the NDP will be able to keep its social democratic platform if it seeks becoming the ruling party or retain opposition. The NDP will have to decide if they want to sacrifice party history for power. Something that former leader Ed Broadbent was certain they would do with Mulcair, that’s why he supported Topp.
Thanks for the comment! You know, I think I agree with you – I would also categorize Liberals as centrist. I suppose I may have made that connection just because I fall a little to the left of the centre, and have always considered myself to be a Liberal. I agree about the NDP’s decision regarding party history versus power. In the end, though, participating in the political sphere means prioritizing power, don’t you think?