NDP leadership candidates face off in final debate

When the 5 NDP leaders candidates use up the deliberate present on Thursday, they will face two challenges — convincing Canadians the party is still relevant, and then rebuilding it.

"​​We don't know when the next election will be, it could be a few months away, it could be a couple of years away," said former NDP MP Peter Julian.

But each leadership candidate must "set out the compelling vision of what happens once they're elected."

Julian was one of over a dozen NDP MPs who lost their seat in the 2025 federal election, a near- death experience for the party.

New Democrats, he says, don't have the luxury of multiple years to rebuild while the governing Liberals drift to the right with massive job cuts looming in the public service. 

"I don't think we have a choice. I think we need to be back in fighting shape because we see where there are real challenges that only the NDP can speak to," Julian said. 

NDP leadership campaign now 3-way race as membership drive ends

He and other party stalwarts see the English-language debate as a chance to hasten the work of rebuilding the NDP and reminding Canadians the party hasn't disappeared. 

It's an opportunity "to start sharing those ideas, not just with members, but also with Canadians," said Mel Richer, the former director of communications for the party. 

Pollster Shachi Kurl is more blunt in her assessment. 

"The NDP has to basically solve the existential crisis," said Kurl, the president of the Angus Reid Institute. 

She says the party must figure out who it serves as it bleeds support to the Conservatives.  

"Is it a party for the working class? Is it a traditional party that was the go-to for factory workers and plant workers in Oshawa? For working-class Canadians whose main issue was affordability?"

NDP leadership candidates weigh in on their struggle to answer questions in French

The two apparent frontrunners — Heather McPherson and Avi Lewis — have attempted over the months-long campaign to communicate their vision for the party.

Lewis's campaign has touched on the angst over climate change, extreme income inequality and the threat generative AI poses to workers. At the same time Lewis has managed to keep at the forefront what he calls the “everyday emergency of people just trying to get by” when paying rent or at the supermarket. 

McPherson's policies aren’t nearly as ambitious. But for the Edmonton MP and her team, her strength is as a more experienced politician, who unlike Lewis, can hit the ground running — taking on the Conservatives and Liberals in Parliament.

As the NDP foreign affairs critic, McPherson drove the conversation in Parliament on Palestinian statehood, and her campaign has attempted to showcase her as a leader who can steer the party when geopolitics take centre stage. 

Tony McQuail runs through his platform ahead of the final NDP leadership debate

Both candidates must also broaden their message to all Canadians. 

“I'll be interested in Avi's ability to appeal beyond what I would call a traditional, more hardline activist base,” said Nathan Cullen, a former NDP MP and B.C cabinet minister.

“Heather's appeal has grown. I think the challenge that I'm looking to see is what she does with it. How much risk is she willing to take? Is she too safe?”

Three other candidates — Rob Ashton, Tannille Johnston and Tony MacQuail— remain in the race and will also be on the debate stage in New Westminster, B.C.

The debate will highlight seven key themes, touching on the economy, the future of the party, foreign affairs, the environment, health care and public services.

NDP leadership hopeful Tanille Johnston talks child care and affordability ahead of final debate

Senior reporter, Parliamentary Correspondent

---

---