BURNABY, B.C. - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says there's nothing wrong with Canada — it's the electoral system that is broken and in need of repair.
That was Singh's morning-after assessment of a federal election election result that saw his party relegated to fourth place in the House of Commons behind the Bloc Quebecois.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh speaking now in Burnaby: #cdnpoli #CanadaVotes2019 pic.twitter.com/LBS0RKwlK9
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) October 22, 2019
The Liberals under Justin Trudeau eked out a minority government victory, and managed to do it with just 33 per cent of the popular vote, compared with 34 per cent for the Andrew Scheer Conservatives.
That translated into 157 seats for the Liberals and 122 for the Conservatives, leaving New Democrats with 24, including a near wipeout in Quebec where the resurgent Bloc grabbed 32 seats.
"It is such an amazing honour to be home here in British Columbia with all of you," says NDP leader Jagmeet Singh from his riding of Burnaby South. Singh said he congratulated Trudeau on his win & wants the NDP to play a "constructive and positive role" in the new Parliament pic.twitter.com/oE2toJpbRI
— CBC British Columbia (@cbcnewsbc) October 22, 2019
Singh, who anticipates working more closely with the Liberals in the upcoming Parliament, says he plans to push for a proportional representation system, which would have given his party more seats based on its 16 per cent slice of the popular vote.
Trudeau broke a 2015 pledge to reform the electoral system and get rid of the current first-past-the-post system in which the candidate with the highest number of votes claims victory.
Jagmeet Singh is now mainstreeting at a mostly empty Metrotown SkyTrain station. pic.twitter.com/ydW7LZnDen
— Kelvin🐶Gawley (@byGawley) October 22, 2019
Thank you, Canada 🇨🇦
— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) October 22, 2019
What a night – and what an unforgettable journey this campaign has been.
With our new NDP caucus in Ottawa, I'm incredibly excited to continue our critical work to achieve the priorities that we’ve heard from people across this country. #elxn43 #ElectionDay
The winner of this election is not a leader or a party - the winners should be Canadians.
— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) October 22, 2019
They want a government that works for them. Not the rich and the powerful. #ElectionDay #elxn43
Despite going from 44 seats to 24... NDP supporters believe in #JagmeetSingh for the future of their party #elxn43 #canadavotes2019 pic.twitter.com/g6cAQ9VXYR
— Molly Thomas (@MollyThomasTV) October 22, 2019
On the issue of whether he would be willing to use potential support of the Trans Mountain pipeline as a bargaining chip, Singh says he will not negotiate through the media. Has not spoken with Prime Minister Trudeau this morning. #cdnpoli #CanadaVotes2019
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) October 22, 2019
To be clear Singh still opposes the project. Just refusing to specify whether he would use potential support as a bargaining chip.
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) October 22, 2019
Given the NDP’s loss of seats, I asked Singh if he felt any immediate pressure to step aside. He laughed it off with a simple “no.”
— Martin MacMahon (@martinmacmahon) October 22, 2019
As for a formal governing agreement or something informal with the Liberals, Singh says “everything is on the table.” #cdnpoli #CanadaVotes2019 pic.twitter.com/rVT7gjg3fD