NDP leader Carole James stepping down
By Contributor
VICTORIA — With British Columbia NDP leader Carole James announcing Monday she is stepping down over political infighting, the province’s two mainstream parties are now without a clear leader.
Her resignation comes only weeks after B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell — whose popularity was driven down in part by the unpopular harmonized sales tax — announced he will be stepping aside once the party chooses a new leader.
Over the past few weeks, 13 dissident NDP MLAs — nicknamed the baker’s dozen — have refused to publicly support James and called for a leadership convention to replace her as official Opposition leader.
James said stepping down was not an easy decision, but necessary for the party to function. She complained her time and energy has been consumed by infighting, adding attempts to resolve the conflict have been unsuccessful.
“We’ve reached out, we’ve tried to get people back to work . . . but the infighting continues,” she said during an emotional news conference at the B.C. Legislature in Victoria.
“I spent my entire life working and building things, not complaining and taking them apart. And right now, at this point in time, my time and energy as leader is consumed with the infighting. And that’s not right. It’s not productive. It’s not useful, and most importantly, it’s not serving the people of British Columbia . . . Fighting amongst ourselves was not what we were elected to do.”
The NDP dissidents make up more than a third of the 34-member caucus.
The internal squabbling comes as polls suggest the NDP could seize control of the legislature from the ailing B.C. Liberals.
The party hasn’t formed a government since 2001 when, after a series of scandals, it was trounced by the Liberals and reduced to only two legislature seats.
“I know they’ll be individuals who see this as a win for the bullies,” said James. “But I have to tell you that the alternative of having 13 people walk away, and our party spending time and energy trying to rebuild those ridings, trying to bring back those individuals, and spending another three months divided . . . isn’t an alternative either.”
The NDP caucus will meet in mid-January to select an interim leader, said James, who has been NDP leader since 2003.
Veteran NDP MLA Jenny Kwan, who was one of the two NDP MLAs who held seats after the 2001 provincial election, called last week for James to resign. Kwan said in a statement that James is “dividing the party by staying on as leader.”
James responded that she was “disappointed” and “frustrated,” adding the dissidents’ public quarrelling makes people question whether the NDP is ready to form a government.
NDP MLA Maurine Karagianis said James could have made history as the province’s first aboriginal female premier.
“I suspect history will look back on this as: ‘Here is a woman who was cheated out of her opportunity because of a rebel group who sort of snatched this away from her without any clear evidence about what they wanted, why they were doing, or what alternative they could offer up,’” she said.
Meanwhile, one of the dissident NDP MLAs, Leonard Krog, said polls showed the party was in a “static position”and that “was a real wake-up call for lots of folks” who were concerned about the party’s future.
“I think she did the right thing for the party,” said Krog, who ran for the NDP leadership in 2003 and lost to James. “There’s an obvious need to renew and revitalize the party. A leadership race will do that.”
He would not say if he’ll take another run at being the NDP leader.
“I think this is absolutely the last thing anyone should be talking about today,” he said. “This is Carole’s day.”
On the Liberal side, former education minister George Abbott, who’s now a candidate for his party’s leadership, called it “shocking” that a minority of MLAs could bring down their leader.
He said James could have been a “formidable leader” in the 2013 provincial election. “In terms of the NDP being a government-in-waiting, I think all of the indicators would say that this is a group that should be waiting a little bit longer,” Abbott said.
He admitted, however, the Liberals are in equal or more trouble than the NDP in the eyes of the voters.
“Given our current standing among the electorate, we would have trouble beating anyone, never mind an NDP led by Carole James.” By Rob Shaw, timescolonist.com
Reprinted with permission by Postmedia Local MLA Katrine Conroy was contacted for comment on this story. She is not speaking to media today but will contact the Rossland Telegraph later this week to comment.
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