Avi Lewis begins NDP leadership amid pushback from some party branches

WINNIPEG — Filmmaker Avi Lewis has been elected as the NDP’s new leader, defeating his four rivals on the first ballot with nearly 40,000 votes, from almost 71,000 ballots cast. 

His victory signals a shift by the party towards unabashedly left-wing policies like government-owned and operated grocery stores, following a devastating election result last year. 

Despite the strong mandate from party members, the leaders of the Alberta and Saskatchewan NDP issued statements shortly after Lewis’s victory saying his policies are “not in the interests of Alberta” and will “hurt” Saskatchewan workers. 

• Who is Avi Lewis, the new leader of the NDP?

Lewis said in his victory speech that he looks forward to speaking with Premier David Eby when he is back home in British Columbia, and also with the other provincial NDP leaders he called “premiers in waiting.”

The new NDP leader did not name specific policies, but acknowledged there are differences between the federal and provincial branches. 

“This party is united in our commitment to working people. And no, we will not always agree on every single issue,” Lewis said.

“But here’s the thing: our debates are another sign that our party is back and our tent is growing. It’s big enough to hold some differences of opinion within it.”

Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi released his own energy policy Friday that talks about expanding Trans Mountain pipeline capacity and revisiting projects like the Energy East pipeline.

“It is clear that the direction of the federal party under this new leader, someone who openly cheered for the defeat of the Alberta NDP government, is not in the interests of Alberta,” Nenshi said in a media statement.

Nenshi said that the Alberta NDP adopted a policy that makes membership in the federal party optional when joining the provincial wing. He said he and thousands of others are only members of the Alberta NDP.

Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck wrote a letter to Lewis, shared with The Canadian Press, saying she will meet with him if he reverses policies on fossil fuels and tries to “understand the realities” of Saskatchewan and its workers. She wrote that his positions on the fossil fuel sector are “ideological and unrealistic” and threaten $13.6 billion in economic activity in the province.

“Your approach has not only taken aim at the resources, but at the people who work in these sectors — and it ignores the realities not only in this province but across the country,” Beck wrote.

• READ MORE: Avi Lewis begins NDP leadership amid pushback from some party branches
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Lewis began his speech with a call for unity in the party, bringing his leadership rivals on stage along with the NDP caucus as they all hugged it out. 

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew also took the stage, flanked by Lewis volunteers and supporters.

Kinew said after the speech that he loves Lewis, and the strong mandate he received shows there is unity among the party membership in his leadership. 

“I just love Avi, like he’s just a great person and we don’t have to agree on everything in order to do the big things together,” Kinew said in a media scrum at the convention.

“The big things are health care, education. Yeah, we can have debates, heated debates about any manner of other issues, but the values are there. The values are we’re fighting for the average person, we’re fighting for the people who don’t have a voice right now and that’s the most important thing.”

Erin Morrison, a former NDP strategist who’s worked for both the federal and Saskatchewan parties, said tensions between the broader party and Prairie branches is a “tale as old as time” but at the end of the day they all have the same core values.

“I very much respect what Beck and Nenshi have put out, that they have to do that to fight, and in fact the NDP wants them to do it. We want every leader to fight like hell for the people they represent,” she said.

Matthew Green, a former NDP MP from Hamilton, Ont., said that everyone wants to be part of the winning team and if Lewis is able to build a path for an energy transition that brings along workers, the Saskatchewan and Alberta branches will come along.

“When he gets that support the leaders there will have to change, and if he doesn’t get that support then perhaps they are right and there needs to be deeper discussions,” Green said at the convention.

“So I want (Beck and Nenshi) to form government and I want to respect the fact that the federal party represents a national mandate that sometimes means there will be conflicts within our discussions.”

• READ MORE: Leadership vote seen as turning point for struggling federal NDP
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Lewis continued his speech by saying the last year shows Canada needs the NDP more than ever as people still struggle with the high cost of living. 

“I know that every politician says they feel your pain and they claim to be outraged by the sky-high price of everything. But what they won’t talk about is why,” Lewis said. “An economy that’s rigged for the rich, leaving the vast majority of us behind.”

Lewis pointed to key services like groceries, telecoms and banks being controlled by a small handful of companies.

“The cost of living emergency is driven by the extreme wealth and power in the hands of the one per cent,” Lewis said.

Lewis said that to pay for his ambitious agenda of expanding public services and starting new ones, like federally run and owned grocery stores, the NDP will focus on increasing corporate and wealth taxes. 

“We know that a thriving world is possible, and we won’t let them stand in our way,” Lewis said in his speech. 

He said that the money is out there to pay for these ideas, and Canada just needs a government with the courage to get it. 

Lewis said the party needs to start year-round political organizing to be ready for the next election and will become a “beacon for the 99 per cent.”

On the international stage, Lewis said that Parliament needs a voice that unapologetically stands against the wars in Gaza and Iran.

Lewis comes from a long line of New Democrats with his grandfather David Lewis being a founding member and former leader. His father, Stephen Lewis, is a former Ontario NDP Leader. 

Lewis said his father is in ill-health, but is still here to see this moment.

The party’s chief electoral officer says there were nearly 71,000 votes cast.

Alberta MP Heather McPherson placed second with just shy of 21,000 votes, followed by social worker Tanille Johnston, union leader Rob Ashton and farmer Tony McQuail. 

Kinew said his biggest piece of advice to Lewis is to bring his leadership rivals on board with his leadership team, including making McPherson the party’s leader in the House of Commons.

Lewis has said he is not in a rush to enter the House of Commons and plans on starting his leadership by strengthening the grassroots before seeking elected office. 

• READ MORE: Saskatchewan NDP distancing itself from new federal leadership

By David Baxter.