NDP leadership race: The contenders

TORONTO - The list of candidates running for the NDP leadership is getting a bit shorter.

Citing several competing demands on his time and insufficient support to continue, Romeo Saganash announced today that he is withdrawing from the race to lead the New Democratic Party.

The party’s leader will be elected March 24, and then begin filling the shoes of Jack Layton, the man who propelled the federal New Democrats to official Opposition for the first time in the party’s history.

Layton died of an undisclosed type of cancer on Aug. 22.

It’s a crowded race so far, now with eight candidates. The deadline to register as a candidate is January 24.

Here is a look at the men and women who have so far thrown their hats into the ring.

Brian Topp
On Sept. 12, then-NDP party president announced he would run for leadership. He has already garnered the endorsement of NDP heavyweights Ed Broadbent (a former federal leader who supported Layton in 2003) and Roy Romanow (former NDP premier of Saskatchewan). NDP MPs Alain Giguere and Yvon Godin have also thrown their support behind Topp.

A Quebec native, he has already been vocal about his beliefs that Quebec is a nation and that a two-state solution is needed in Israel. He is also plugged into labour issues, and works at ACTRA, a union for Canada’s film industry.


Thomas Mulcair
Mulcair, the NDP deputy leader, has long been considered a front-runner to succeed Layton. Mulcair spearheaded the breakthrough in Quebec, but there is no provincial wing of the party, and there are only about 1,700 party members in the province – a serious disadvantage for a man who has a low profile outside of Quebec. Four Quebec MPs have said Mulcair had their support before he announced his intention to run.

A lawyer and former provincial cabinet minister, Mulcair has been an outspoken advocate of strong environmental protection.

Paul Dewar
Dewar, who represents Ottawa-Centre, declared he would make a bid for the leadership by rallying the grassroots of the party. The 48 year old is well-known in Ottawa thanks to his mother, Marion, who served as mayor.

Since being elected in 2006, Dewar has focused his energy on issues including pensions, public servants, Afghanistan, Libya, banning Bisphenol A (BPA), generic drugs and increasing foreign aid.

Nathan Cullen
This 39 year old from B.C. said he would like to lead the NDP despite the heavy competition. “Everybody likes an underdog,” he said after declaring. Cullen was elected in 2004 and has worked on issues including natural resources, information and privacy, and the environment. He is a vocal opponent of the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline and has called for a ban on oil tankers off the northern cost of B.C.

Martin Singh
Singh, a pharmacist from Nova Scotia with few ties to Ottawa, has been the biggest surprise in the NDP leadership race so far. The longtime New Democrat announced his intention to run in Mississauga, Ont.

The 38 year old has four degrees and serves as a reservist in the Canadian Forces, and has never run for public office at any level. Singh said he plans to focus his campaign on business, health care, pharmacare and the environment.

Peggy Nash
Nash, who hails from Toronto, announced her intentions to run for the leadership on Oct. 28. As party finance critic, Nash has been hammering the government on the need to create jobs. Before winning her seat in 2011, Nash worked with the Canadian Auto Workers, one of Canada’s most influential unions.

Niki Ashton
The Churchill, Man. politician became the youngest candidate in the leadership when she announced her candidacy on Nov. 7. Since she was elected to the House of Commons in 2008, Ashton has worked on issues including youth and rural and northern development. The provincial wings of the NDP are particularly large in western Canada, which could be a major advantage for this Manitoba MP.


Robert Chisholm
The Nova Scotia MP announced on Oct. 30 that he will seek the leadership of the New Democratic Party, however on Dec. 21 he announced on Twitter that he was no longer running for party leadership. Chisholm is a rookie MP, but served as NDP leader in his home province. He is also a veteran of labour issues working with the Canadian Union of Public Employees in the past.


- With files from The Canadian Press and Postmedia News