Jagmeet Singh concedes seat, steps down as leader as NDP loses party status

New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh addresses supporters accompanied by his wife Gurkiran Kaur at his campaign headquarters on election night, in Burnaby, B.C., Monday, April 28, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns (Ethan Cairns/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

After a challenging election campaign that saw New Democrats sidelined, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has failed to secure his re-election, and announced he will step down once an interim leader is appointed.

“Choosing to commit your life to politics obviously comes with some sacrifice, but we choose this life because of the chance to change the country you love for the better,” Singh said from his election night headquarters in Burnaby, B.C. on Monday night, often pausing to hold back tears, and thanking his wife and supporters. “We may lose sometimes, and those losses hurt.”

“It’s tough, but we are only defeated if we stop fighting,” he added. “We’re only defeated when we believe those that tell us that we can never dream of a better Canada, a fairer Canada, a more compassionate Canada.”

• Canadians give Liberals 4th mandate
• Check your riding in our interactive results map

Singh has conceded his seat in the House of Commons, one he’s held since 2019, coming in third.

The riding of Burnaby Central — formerly Burnaby South — was affected by redistribution ahead of this election.

The party has also lost its official status, failing to secure the 12 seats necessary.

“I know this night is a disappointing night for New Democrats,” Singh said. “We had really good candidates that lost tonight.”

“I know how hard you worked,” he added. “I spent time with you. You’re amazing. I’m so sorry you’re not going to be able to represent your communities. I know you’re going to continue to fight for them.”

For the better part of the campaign, Singh faced repeated questions about his inability to gain traction in what largely came down to a two-way race between the Liberals and Conservatives, centred on the ballot question of who would be best to handle the economic and sovereignty threats posed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

In the final weekend of the race, however, Singh said the party’s internal numbers were “much better” than what national polling indicated, and he was “confident” about how many NDP MPs would be elected on Monday.

He made the comments Friday in an interview with George Stroumboulopoulos.

Speaking to volunteers just hours before his resignation speech, Singh said it was the “last push.”

“Even when we don’t form a majority, we get stuff done, like dental care,” he told volunteers in Port Moody, B.C. “But we’ve got to remind people, it’s all because of you. Because you vote NDP, we’re able to fight for you.”

“We’re able to stand up to any government that wants to cut the things that you value,” he added “So, remind people, vote NDP to defend our kind of Canada, so we can be there fighting for you. We’re going to get that message out there again and again, we’re the ones fighting for you.”

A former Ontario MPP, Singh won the NDP leadership in 2017 and led the party from outside the House of Commons — much to the chagrin of some longtime New Democrats — until 2019, when he secured a seat in the Burnaby South, B.C. byelection.

Before stepping on to the federal scene, the self-described human rights activist graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School and worked as a lawyer. He entered politics in Ontario in 2011.

In 2018 he married his wife, entrepreneur Gurkiran, after inviting media to cover his proposal. Singh and his wife had their first daughter, Anhad in 2022 and welcomed their second, Dani in 2023.

When asked by CTV News on Friday morning how he’s able to stay upbeat amid a challenging campaign that’s thrown the future of his party into question, Singh said he’s learned over the tough times he’s had in life to “have joy in the struggle.”

“In all those struggles, I found that you can either laugh or cry, right? In those tough times,” an emotional Singh said to a standing round of applause.