MPP Sol Mamakwa will not run for Ontario NDP leadership

MPP Sol Mamakwa says he will not be seeking the leadership of the Ontario New Democratic Party in 2023.

In a social media post, the MPP for the riding of Kiiwetinoong thanked everyone who encouraged him to put his name forward for leader.

“Leadership for me is a very serious consideration and my top priority is to continue being a voice for Kiiwetinoong and First Nations people across Ontario,” he said.

Mamakwa was one of several names put forth after Andrea Horwath announced her resignation following last June’s election defeat.

With the registration deadline of Dec. 5, Marit Stiles is the lone candidate to have officially declared her intention to seek the leadership of the party.

Chris Glover and Wayne Gates have also been mentioned as potential candidates.

Gates, who represents Niagara Falls, said while he has been “overwhelmed” by the encouragement and words of support, he would not be making a leadership run.

Glover, who represents the downtown Toronto riding of Spadina-Fort York, said he’s “kicking the tires” to see if a bid is still possible.

Stiles, who represents the Toronto riding of Davenport, has garnered endorsements from seven of her NDP caucus colleagues, including Kristyn Wong-Tam, Bhutila Karpoche and Chandra Pasma. She said earlier this week she would welcome a race.

”I’d love to debate, but I can’t debate myself – or maybe I can,“ she joked.

“My team and I, we’ve been just very focused on … moving forward on our plan, which is to build the NDP, sign up as many members as we can, and start organizing to defeat (Premier Doug) Ford in 2026.”

Candidates are required garner nomination signatures from 100 members, with at least half coming from women, gender diverse or non-binary members, and a quarter from “equity-seeking groups” such as people who are Black or Indigenous. The signatures must come from a variety of regions.

Contenders must also pay a $55,000 fee by the deadline and can’t start fundraising until they are a registered candidate.

The party says it plans to have a new leader in place by March 2023.

Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report