NDP source says voters can expect an 'unfiltered' Singh in election campaign
Source close to NDP leader says he is adopting a change in tone
The NDP is further distancing itself from the Liberals, committing to vote against the government while also adopting a change in tone as the party prepares for a potential spring election.
A senior NDP source with knowledge of the party's strategy confirmed the change in posture after Singh held his first news conference of the year.
The source spoke to CBC News on the condition of confidentiality because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the approach.
Unlike previous news conferences or interviews, Singh was unambiguous on Monday.
"It does not matter who is selected as the next Liberal leader. They have let you down. They do not deserve another chance," Singh told reporters after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his pending resignation.
"As soon as there is a confidence vote, New Democrats will be voting against the government."
After that, Singh added his intentions would stand regardless of who the Liberals chose as their new leader.
The source said what they hoped Canadians saw was an NDP leader who was "unplugged … and unfiltered."
Singh's rhetoric has been ratcheting up since he "ripped up" the party's governance agreement with the Liberals in September. The party, however, stopped short of committing to join other opposition parties to vote non-confidence in the government.
December saw the sudden resignation of then finance minister Chrystia Freeland. While Singh called for the first time for Trudeau to resign, he said New Democrats wanted to keep their options open before committing to ending the Trudeau government.
This year, Singh left little doubt about what he would do.
The NDP source said Singh was the most unequivocal he has been.
The source noted that since New Democrats tore up their agreement with the Liberals, the NDP tried to get more from the government through public pressure. The source cautioned there were no negotiations, but the New Democrats made demands in the press through what the source called a "normal minority government situation."
The source said it soon became clear that the party could not get more.
Karl Bélanger, former principal secretary to previous NDP leader Tom Mulcair and now head of Traxxion Stratégies, said that the time for New Democrats to bring down the Liberals might have been before Trudeau's pending exit.
"I think, in retrospect, the NDP and the other two opposition parties would have rather faced Justin Trudeau in the election," Bélanger said.
"I guess if they really wanted to face Justin Trudeau, they missed their window by allowing him to survive these confidence votes this fall."
The New Democrats' fortunes in recent public opinion polls have improved, according to polling analyst and publisher of TheWrit.ca, Éric Grenier.
But that might be temporary, he said.
Grenier, who also maintains CBC's Poll Tracker, said in 2024, New Democrats were in danger of losing seats in British Columbia and Ontario.
Grenier said that the NDP has closed the gap in polling with the Liberals, but it remains to be seen whether they can overtake them.
"There's an opportunity for New Democrats to move ahead," Grenier said. "But the early indications are that Trudeau's resignation is more likely to help the Liberals than hurt them even more."
"Which means the NDP may have lost their chance to move ahead of the Liberals."
Former NDP director of communications Mélanie Richer sees the Liberal leadership race as an opportunity to reclaim what she called "progressive" positions.
Some of the Liberals who are considering running, Richer said, would bring the governing party back to the centre.
"I think it could be an opportunity for the NDP to run against someone who is relatively unknown … and who doesn't speak to our voter universe in the same way the prime minister did," Richer said.
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