Disgruntled New Democrats urge Andrea Horwath to resign as Ontario leader

Leader of the Ontario NDP Andrea Horwath. Photo courtesy of Horwath’s official Facebook page.

TORONTO — Andrea Horwath will be staring down some challengers to her leadership when Ontario’s New Democrats gather in Toronto today for a provincial council meeting.

Horwath won’t face a leadership review today — that comes at a convention in November — but one group of New Democrats angered by the party’s platform for the June 12 election says she should resign.

The NDP’s Socialist Caucus is circulating a petition saying Horwath had no mandate to “turn the party to the right” with a campaign it says alienated social justice advocates and labour unions — and cost the party three seats in Toronto.

The petition says “the Ontario NDP electoral campaign was the worst since Bob Rae tried to defend his odious social contract in 1995,” when the province’s only New Democratic government was defeated after one term in office.

Horwath downplays the dissent by saying New Democrats are vigorously democratic and have healthy debates all the time, but admits the party did not do everything right during the election campaign.

She says there will be a full debriefing on the campaign at the provincial council this weekend, and members who are still upset will have a chance to debate the issues during the leadership review in two months.