MARTLET.CA
JAN 29, 2026 • VOLUME 78 • ISSUE 14
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MARTLET UVic's independent newspaper
NEWS
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'Hamnet' is a poignant exploration of how the arts can transform us
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The NDP collapsed in 2025. Does that mean they are irrelevant? The Martlet talks with analysts, scholars, and leadership candidates about the future of the NDP DECLAN SNOWDEN MANAGING EDITOR
I
n the 2025 Canadian federal election, the New Democratic Party (NDP) secured only seven seats in parliament — the worst electoral performance in their history. The Liberal Party of Canada (LPC), meanwhile, secured a minority government with 169 seats —described by many as a historic comeback, as the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) held a 25-point lead over the Liberal’s prior to former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's resignation. Many critics, as well as other news outlets, have described the NDP’s performance as a “collapse.” Charlie Angus, a former NDP member of parliament (MP), told GlobalNews it was a “catastrophic loss” and that “it’d be dangerous to tell ourselves that we were simply the victims of strategic voting.” A report published by the NDP following the election found multiple points of failure. Despite resulting in progressive policy wins like Pharmacare and dental care — providing Canadians with coverage for birth control and diabetes medications, and a range of oral
health procedures, respectively — the report said the Confidence and Supply Agreement (CASA) with the LPC made the NDP come across as “weak.” The same report described their poor election results as “devastating” and a “historic setback for the New Democratic Party of Canada.” According to the Angus Reid Institute, only 13 per cent of Canadians said they would “definitely” consider the NDP in the future. Following his loss in his own riding, Burnaby, former party leader Jagmeet Singh stepped down. Now, the party stands at a crossroads with five potential candidates looking to be the next leader — Tanille Johnston, Tony McQuail, Heather McPherson, Rob Ashton, and Avi Lewis. The leadership race has largely been received negatively by the media. Prym Goodacre — a policy and communications advisor who worked on BC Greens leader Emily Lowan’s campaign — told the Martlet the race had been described as a “hug box.” An opinion piece in the Hill Times said the party could be “sleepwalking to irrelevance,” while, an article published by CBC said the race “could be turning into a snoozer,” and that the civility of the race could be causing the party to drift “further into
irrelevance.” But, in a leadership race, do the candidates really need to be in conflict with each other? On Jan. 5, 2026, the Toronto Star reported that Ashton accused Lewis of “dividing the party” and “undermining provincial NDP governments.” Lewis reportedly brushed off the accusations. Despite criticisms of the race being overly civil, Ashton’s criticisms of Lewis “dividing the NDP” were largely received negatively.
"Why should I care about the race?" Leadership races, first and foremost, aren’t federal elections. You aren’t seeing representatives of diametrically opposed parties take stage to duke it out in electoral boxing. They are, instead, a race to determine who's best for the party. All the candidates are running to occupy the same space, in this case, in progressive politics.
As a result, they’re less likely to be as combative with each other in the same way they would be against a Liberal or Conservative opponent. Dr. Penny Bryden — a history professor at the UVic, who has studied internal party power dynamics — told the Martlet that a boring leadership race is not indicative of the party’s future. “They're probably all kind of snoozy … an unexpected person may win, and the NDP may bound back. I don't think that Jack Layton's selection was either fore-ordained or particularly exciting, and yet, it worked,” she said. In 1993, the NDP suffered a similar collapse, securing only nine seats. The party eventually recovered and achieved official opposition status in 2011 with 103 seats under Layton — their best ever electoral performance. Dr. Justin Leifso — a professor of Canadian politics at UVic — shared Bryden's sentiment. “[The] most important thing is figuring out who they are and what they want to be, and then coming up with a strategy for how to reach [that] … I don't think that it matters much if there's a ton of media on them. I also don't think that they're drifting into irrelevance” Perhaps traditional ‘attack style’ politics are affecting people's
perception of the race. Or perhaps people are simply overlooking the benefit of a leadership race — to reflect on the party’s mistakes, and solidify their identity going forward. Former NDP leadership candidate Nathan Cullen told CBC that the candidates are in “violent agreement” with each other. It’s true. The candidates agree on many things. Lewis, McQuail, and Johnston are all running on achieving proportional representation via a citizens assembly. During the Jan. 10 leadership debate, McPherson could be seen nodding in agreement with Johnston’s ideas to improve public transit in rural communities, and McPherson later took a moment to acknowledge Johnston’s idea. The list goes on. So, you might be asking yourself, why should I care about the race? Why should I care about five candidates with almost the same ideals, and many of the same ideas? Although they’re similar, each candidate brings something unique to the table, offering something the party and each other could learn from. Continue reading on page 6...