AB and SK NDP Distance Themselves From New Federal NDP Leader Avi Lewis

The leaders of the Alberta and Saskatchewan New Democratic parties are distancing themselves from newly elected federal NDP leader Avi Lewis, saying his policies would hurt their provinces’ resource sectors.

On March 29 during the NDP’s convention in Winnipeg, Lewis was chosen by members as the federal party’s new leader on the first ballot with 56 percent of the votes.

Lewis is strongly opposed to oil and gas development, saying Canada should prioritize greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions and focus on renewable energy.

“The relentless increase in Oil and Gas production in Canada has already cancelled out all GHG reductions in all other sectors and made us a climate pariah in the G7,” he said in one such remark on oil and gas in October 2025.

“I am unequivocally opposed to any new fossil fuel development — including LNG,” he said in another statement in November 2025.

However, in oil-rich Alberta and Saskatchewan, the provincial wings of the party are faced with an electorate that depends on the prosperity of the sector for job opportunities, as oil and gas is the largest contributor to Alberta’s economy and a significant player in Saskatchewan’s.

“We believe in Alberta and we believe in Canadian energy and the good jobs it creates. We believe in more pipelines and in reducing emissions,” Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said in a statement shortly after Lewis’s election as leader on March 29.

“Albertans deserve federal leaders who understand the importance of Alberta and our essential role in the federation.”

Nenshi also noted that Alberta NDP members voted recently to make membership in the federal party optional. Currently, the NDP is the only major federal party whose provincial wings are officially affiliated with it, meaning membership in a provincial wing also confers automatic federal membership, but the Alberta NDP has chosen to break the affiliation.

“Many thousands of our provincial members, including myself, are not members of the federal party. We are a big tent and welcome the support of people who vote for every federal party,” he said.

The Alberta NDP last formed government in the province in 2015, governing until 2019, when they lost to the United Conservative Party (UCP). The NDP won 38 seats in the 2023 election, losing to Premier Danielle Smith’s UCP which won 49 seats.

Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck told Lewis in a letter that she won’t meet with him, as his campaign team had requested, until he changes his position on the resource sector.

“Your approach has not only taken aim at the resources, but at the people who work in these sectors—and it ignores the realities not only in this province but across the country,” Beck said on March 29.

“When you publicly reverse your position on these matters and show a willingness to try to understand the realities of our province and the thousands of proud Saskatchewan workers who rely on our industries to feed their families, I will meet with you.”

The Saskatchewan NDP hasn’t formed government since the 2007 election. In the 2024 election, the conservative Saskatchewan Party was re-elected with 34 seats, while the NDP won 27.

Lewis has also clashed with B.C. NDP Premier David Eby, saying he’s opposed to the province’s development of LNG. Following Lewis’s victory, Eby issued a statement congratulating him on the win, without endorsing his policy statements, while emphasizing the need for economic development.

“In unstable times, our Look West plan is growing our economy and creating good, union jobs in the industries that power our province like mining, energy and tech,” Eby said on March 29. “We will work with anyone and any federal leader who shares our priorities, and stand firm against those who put that progress at risk.”

Lewis received support from Manitoba Premier and NDP Leader Wab Kinew, who was onstage with him in Winnipeg as he delivered his victory speech. Kinew told reporters that while he supports Lewis, he doesn’t agree with him on all issues.

“I just love Avi. He’s just a great person and we don’t have to agree on everything in order to do the big things together,” Kinew told reporters on March 29. “The big things are health care, education. Yeah, we can have debates, heated debates about any manner of other issues, but the values are there.”

In his victory speech, Lewis said his plan is to “Trump-proof” the economy by “investing massively in Canadian economic independence.”

He said he would achieve this by using the “unmatched power of public ownership” in all sectors including food, housing, and industry, while “investing in the care economy as true nation-building: the education, health care, elder care, and child care that holds our social fabric together.”

Editor’s note: This article was updated on March 30 to correct the number of seats the UCP won in the 2023 Alberta election. The Epoch Times regrets the error.