Two years on, Jagmeet Singh on a slippery slope

Once Hailed as Trudeau’s ‘worst nightmare’, the New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh has seen his popularity crater, his party is in a bad shape and his first election win is scratchy at best Ultimately, it were 2,929 votes that may have saved Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party in Canada, from a political demise that would have been as quick as his dizzy rise in Canadian politics. Party veterans, including Singh’s predecessor Thomas Mulcair, had warned that a defeat in the by-election to the House of Commons could lead to the 40-year-old’s ouster from the post and the NDP electing someone else to helm its campaign for the federal election due October 21. The fact was not lost on Singh, as he said, “Thanks to a vote of confidence from the people of Burnaby South, today isn’t the end of a campaign – it’s the start of one.” Just 17 months ago, Singh was being hailed as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “worst nightmare” not only in the Canadian media, but also globally. Singh’s leadership may not have inspired confidence within the party caucus in parliament as well — several NDP MPs have announced they will not seek a re-election this time.