ɫɫ��

“Equity-seeking members — particularly women, people with disabilities, and those who are Indigenous, queer, or racialized — are routinely asked to show up, but not to speak up. We are encouraged to help build the party, but not to shape its direction. Our presence is celebrated in public, but sidelined behind closed doors,” wrote Samah Khandker, one of the party’s Quebec representatives, in a June 23 email announcing her resignation from the NDP’s federal executive.

The emails were sent to the NDP’s caucus members and what appears to be the entirety of the party’s federal executive, which comprises around 60 people.

Khandker’s resignation came after a charged federal council meeting that was held on Sunday, where the party’s top governing body met to discuss routine matters, but also considered rules concerning the NDP’s pending leadership race.

Gazan, one of the NDP’s seven remaining MPs, replied on Monday evening to Khandker’s email, writing that: “As an Indigenous woman, my experience in the party as an elected MP has been filled with racism, dismissal, and sexism. This is an issue that I have brought up with the party on numerous occasions.”

In a third email, a co-chair of the party’s Indigenous Peoples’ Commission, Ashley Zarbatany, raised concerns about feeling undermined as the party shapes its leadership race rules, stating that the NDP “cannot afford to continue to follow the patterns that have led us to our greatest electoral loss” and that the party had reached “a critical juncture.”

The New Democrats have wrestled with finding their footing after an election that saw the NDP lose official party status — and former leader Jagmeet Singh lose his seat and subsequently resign.

The party’s process to select veteran NDP MP Don Davies as interim leader last month sparked controversy after three members of the party’s caucus — Gazan, Vancouver East’s Jenny Kwan and Nunavut’s Lori Idlout — said that while they supported Davies’ appointment, they were not properly consulted about the decision. The three MPs, the only racialized and Indigenous members of the NDP’s caucus, have also said that attempts to discuss who should be interim leader were “rebuffed” by other MPs.

The matter was raised in the trio of emails obtained this week by the Star, as were allegations that the party’s top executives, known as “table officers,” were stifling broader discussions about the contest to install a permanent leader. 

In response to the myriad allegations contained within the emails, NDP President Mary Shortall said in a statement to the Star that “we take these concerns seriously and acknowledge the hurt that’s been expressed.”

“But it’s important to be clear: the decision around interim leadership was made transparently and in line with the party’s constitution,” Shortall wrote.

“This current group of table officers, elected in 2023, reflects a new generation of leadership. We are diverse and committed women, volunteers who believe deeply in our party and we were elected to do things differently. We are not here to repeat the past. We are here to rebuild trust, open up our governance, and make space for more voices.”

Shortall added that a party review and “renewal process” is set to soon begin, and that “every member will have the opportunity to shape the path forward.”

When reached by the Star for comment, Gazan, a potential leadership contender, declined to discuss what experiences she has had within the party in terms of “racism, dismissal, and sexism.”

She said in an interview that her experiences were not unique to the NDP and that they existed in all political parties.

In her Monday email, Gazan wrote that she had never spoken publicly “about matters of racism, sexism, (and) misogyny” that she had faced within the party since her election in 2019, but said that addressing them was necessary to the rebuilding process.

Khandker, in a written statement sent to the Star, said she felt that “equity-seeking members are treated as symbolic participants rather than active decision-makers” and that internal party procedure is used to “shut down debate.”

Last week, in response to concerns about how the interim leader was selected, Davies released a statement saying he formally submitted his leadership to be ratified by all caucus members, and that he had received their unanimous support. Gazan thanked Davies and said she was “relieved that due process” was being followed.

Zarbatany wrote in her email following Khandker’s resignation that a request to hold a mediated meeting with the party’s table officers (which includes positions like the party’s president and national director) about how the three MPs were treated during the interim leader matter went unanswered.

But she told the Star in an interview Tuesday that the way the party is determining the rules for its yet-to-be-announced leadership race is also part of the problem.

Zarbatany said those on federal council were not given enough time during Sunday’s meeting to discuss two key leadership contest rules: the entry fee for interested candidates and the length of the race. She also said a list of proposed motions concerning the race and drafted by some members never made it on Sunday’s agenda.

One of those motions proposed that the entry fee be set at $50,000, a figure Zarbatany said was much lower than the $75,000 minimum she said top officials raised in the meeting.

“We don’t want it to be (a number) that prevents candidates from equity-seeking backgrounds to be able to participate. We want it to be barrier-free,” she told the Star.

In her Monday email, Zarbatany wrote that she had spoken to members of the party’s Indigenous Peoples’ Commission and found that none of them would back an entry fee over $50,000.

“I have heard repeatedly that we should not be trying to ‘Outlib the Liberals’ with elitist entrance fees in this race. I have also heard that a $100,000 entrance fee is not going to save a dead party,” Zarbatany wrote.

The party’s president and national director, along with other table officers, appear to be CCed in Khandker, Gazan and Zarbatany’s emails.

The party’s official response to the Star did not address concerns about the process to finalize the leadership race rules.