NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh struggled to keep his emotions in check late Monday night as he took the stage at his campaign headquarters in Burnaby, B.C., to deliver the bad news: his fight is over. Poised to finish third in his own riding, Singh's party is projected to lose 17 of the 24 seats it had at dissolution after earning just 6.3 per cent of the vote, leaving the New Democrats without official party status, having fallen short of the 12-MP minimum.
In 2022, Jagmeet Singh emerged as kingmaker in the Canadian polls, helping Justin Trudeau to form a government. Many had assumed that the New Democratic Party (NDP) leader would play a significant role this federal election too. However, that wasn’t the case to be, as Singh announced that he is stepping down as leader of the NDP after conceding the loss of his seat in Burnaby Central. Moreover, his party is also staring at losing its national party status — parties in Canada need 12 seats to officially quality for party status in the House of Commons.
India’s NDTV predicted Jagmeet Singh’s “removal from the scene” would “give Prime Minister Mark Carney and his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, [a chance] to work together to restore India-Canada ties.” NDTV posted the video of Singh’s concession speech, noting that he “choked back tears numerous times.” The typically pro-Modi WION News on Tuesday said “cheers” resounded through Indian social media over the “drubbing” of Singh.
