Ryan Comeau

You would think the NDP learned from the election. You would think an election disaster of that magnitude would have them take a look in the mirror or consider returning to their working-class roots. Instead, they have doubled down on the identity politics and rhetoric that drove their voters away.

Don’t believe it? Take a look at their leadership race rules. They include the usual requirements: fundraising, applications, interviews, petition signatures. It goes off the rails with the petition signatures:

• “at least fifty percent (50%) of the total required signatures must be from members who do not identify as a cis man;”
• “a minimum of one hundred (100) signatures must be from members of equity-seeking groups, including but not limited to racialized members, Indigenous members, members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community, and persons living with disabilities.”

This is tokenism, all dressed up to look progressive, and at its core, it is wildly out of touch with Canadians. 

We do not divide ballots by gender, sexual orientation, or race. We do not tell candidates in our elections that only certain demographics’ voices matter. In Canada, every citizen’s voice is equal; one person, one voice, one vote. Our leaders are chosen because of their ideas and because of their merit. Not because they tick a box for popularity with “equity-seeking groups” or drum up signatures within narrow communities.

Let me give you a hypothetical so you can see how ridiculous this could get:

Suppose a straight cis male approaches his preferred leadership candidate to offer a signature as support. What if that candidate already has their maximum of 50% cis male signatures? This supporter is not in an equity-seeking group, and they are a cis male. That voter’s support is made completely unhelpful. Not because of anything he did but he doesn’t get to have a voice and contribute to his preferred candidate because of his sexual orientation and gender. How is that democratic?

If you can get 500 signatures and the $100,000 entry fee, it should be enough to prove you are a serious candidate. For the NDP, it is not. They have made it about which boxes you can check and not your merit.

Even the interim leader of the NDP, M.P. Don Davies said on a podcast that he thinks the NDP has veered too far into identity politics. It’s what many Canadians already believe, and is the reason for their collapse.

The NDP’s obsession with identity politics is a part of a deeper identity crisis that has plagued the party since the election of Jagmeet Singh. An identity crisis that in my opinion, killed the party. In the Layton-Mulclair years, the NDP was clear about who they were: they were the party of the working class. They stood with unions, defended the working Canadian, and backed issues that resonated with average people. 

Those days are long gone. The voting base that carried the NDP to the official opposition no longer see themselves represented in the party, and they are right not to. Instead of championing issues that make life better for the working class, the NDP has continuously focused on political battles over race, gender, and sexual orientation. While Canadians worry about paying rent, keeping the lights on, and feeding their children, the NDP obsesses over labels and fights minor ideological battles.

These leadership rules are a prime example of the NDP abandoning their base, working Canadians. They have turned themselves into an activist club instead of a serious political party. 

They have veered way too far into identity politics. Canadians see it, Don Davies said it, the election results proved it, and their leadership rules reassured us. 

If the NDP ever wants to become a serious alternative for Canadians, it needs to take a hard look in the mirror.

Ryan Comeau is a contributor to TrendingPolitics.ca