Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi says he is still pondering the option of separating the provincial NDP from the federal party.
Currently, the NDP is the only party where both provincial and federal branches are officially affiliated. Under current Alberta NDP policy, someone registering as an Alberta NDP member automatically also becomes registered with the federal party.
Nenshi said it was clear that most of the Alberta NDP members want this to be optional rather than automatic.
“Opinions vary on how much further to go than that, but we continue to have conversations with party members,” he said during a recent Postmedia interview.
The former Calgary mayor said that he was not particularly partisan.
“I am interested in giving Albertans the best possible solution, and if they find a home in the Alberta NDP, but they have a home in a different party federally, I say we welcome them anyway.”
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Nenshi had raised this issue previously as well.
“The issue on this one for me is simply that the members are really talking about it. I hear it every day,” he said during a June 24 news conference, shortly after becoming Alberta NDP leader.
“The way I like to lead is I don’t like things that are bubbling under the surface; I like to surface them. And so I’d like to surface that conversation with the members as soon as possible.”
Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh responded to Nenshi’s comments days later, saying the decision to sever the ties would be a mistake.
“We are united in our goals to take on Conservatives, to bring forward a clear vision for a government that works for people,” Singh said on June 27.
He added that the best way to achieve the goal of bringing down the competition was by being united.
The NDP in Alberta, and in Saskatchewan, have attempted at times in the past to distance themselves from the federal party on certain policy issues, particularly on issues related to the oil and gas sector.
In Alberta, former Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley and Singh were on opposite sides of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion decision, with Notley in favour of the project and Singh opposed.
In 2021, a Saskatchewan NDP internal report recommended the provincial party put more pressure on the federal branch to better consider Saskatchewan’s interests when it comes to positions on resource development. The report said Singh’s positions on the issue have hurt the electoral chances of the provincial party.
The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
