The executive of the B.C. New Democratic Party made its move in July, naming a review panel to plumb the depths of the party’s loss in the May election.
Now it’s the membership’s turn.
A group operating under the name Forward stepped forward Monday with some thoughts of its own.
The obvious first impression is that the rank-and-file members of the party are even more unhappy about the election outcome than the executive is.
By now it’s universally held that the party blew the May election. So there’s lots to be unhappy about. But the questions are: Who gets to wear the blame, and how widely will it be distributed?
The party establishment has created a process that will arrive at some conclusions in time for the convention in November.
But Forward’s initial appearance on social-media sites suggests as politely as possible that some members have already arrived at their own conclusions.
And it’s clear that they are less than enchanted with the party establishment’s performance. There’s no suggestion of open warfare at this point. But there’s potential for things to get distinctly awkward when the time comes to apportion the responsibility for the loss.
Most expect leader Adrian Dix will eventually pay the price and step aside. But the new group’s initial outline of its cause suggests they think more than that is required.
The loss was devastating but it was also a wake-up call, says Forward.
In an introductory message, the group said: “It’s time for our party to change … It’s time for new leaders within the party, people with a proven record of winning elections with modern tactics and a relevant message.”
The one spokesperson for the group at this point is Sage Aaron, a party veteran and public-sector union communications official.
Aaron told media that members of the group are more interested in rebuilding the party as a whole, rather than debating Dix’s continued leadership.
The group’s public pitch said: “We’re driven by the knowledge that we can do more to better our province during one day in government than we will in 16 years as the opposition.”
In other words, politics is about winning. And if the party can’t win with its current lineup, then it’s time for a new lineup.
The specific focus of Forward’s initial push is to get as many people as they can who agree with their theme to the convention.
That means getting them named or elected as delegates at the constituency association meetings that are taking place around B.C. shortly.
Some of those meetings could shape up as contests between the loyal old troopers who have been going to conventions for years and an impatient crowd of younger folk who want change.
That would make for some interesting votes when it comes to the election of officers. Particularly the presidency, held by Moe Sihota for four years. His hold on that job is just as tenuous as Dix’s at this point. And the more traction the Forward group gets, the less certain any members of the executive can be about continuing in their roles.
If there were any expectations that members would sit patiently and wait for the review panel to arrive at its conclusions before deciding what to do next, they vanished Monday with Forward’s arrival on the scene. The panel is spending much of its time analyzing the past. The new group, by definition, is looking forward to the future.
They might wind up running on separate parallel tracks. But if comes to a clash, you can count on it being a visible one.
One characteristic of the B.C. NDP — whether it is leadership races, mutinies or arguments about quota systems for candidates — they usually have their arguments out in the open for all to see.
Just So You Know: It’s ironic that slogan of the NDP’s failed campaign was “Change for the Better. One Practical Step at a Time.”
B.C. clearly didn’t buy into it. So now it looks like some members are applying it to the party itself.
