Voting begins for NDP leadership

Advance polls could deny some drama from March 24 convention

OTTAWA – An estimated 70 per cent of New Democrats will vote in advance for a new leader in a process that begins Thursday.

Officials say the party’s 128,361 members will soon receive, or have already received, their voting packages and will be allowed to start mailing in their ballots or voting online as of 2 p.m.

Spokesperson Sally Housser speculated that more than twothirds of members will take advantage of advance polls even though people are being encouraged to wait for the leadership convention.

The NDP’S leadership process differs from the more conventional delegated voting system in that members need not be on the convention floor to pick a leader.

Political observers have argued that means the party could risk losing a lot of the hype and media attention that usually accompanies such conventions.

That said, if Housser’s estimates prove accurate, just 30 per cent of members will wait until the March 24 leadership convention to vote, be it from the convention floor, from home or from one of the many so-called voting parties being planned across the country.

It raises questions about whether the winner ultimately will benefit from run-off voting in which candidates drop off the ballot, throw their support behind another and encourage their supporters to do the same.

It’s what generally makes leadership races exciting. For example, it led to Stéphane Dion’s unexpected victory in the 2006 Liberal leadership race after placing third in the first ballot vote.

Given the number of candidates in the NDP race, Housser suggested the estimated 30 per cent who save their vote for election day will likely have an influence on the final ballot.

“The margins between the candidates are probably going to be pretty even,” she said.

“There will probably be a few thousand people voting at convention and that will probably make the difference in the end.”

Candidates vying for the party’s top job include MPS Thomas Mulcair, Paul Dewar, Peggy Nash, Niki Ashton and Nathan Cullen, as well as strategist Brian Topp and Nova Scotia businessman Martin Singh.

Romeo Saganash and Robert Chisholm have since dropped out of the race. On Wednesday, however, Chisholm became the first candidate to throw his support behind a colleague.

He said he would be supporting Mulcair, who has impressed him with his prowess during question period and parliamentary debates.

He also admires the “energy and dedication” he says he has brought to the race for party leadership.