The B.C. NDP’s leadership contest is off to a rocky start, with a gender quota problem and a disputed candidate to replace ousted leader Carole James.
James’ decision to step down as leader leaves the party with several likely candidates, including NDP house leader Mike Farnworth and Fraser-Nicola MLA Harry Lali. So far no women have declared an interest in the job.
The B.C. NDP’s constitution specifies that both genders must be represented in the positions of leader, president and treasurer. Currently the president is former MLA Moe Sihota and the party treasurer is Bob Smits.
Former NDP MLA and political blogger David Schreck raised the issue in a New Year’s Eve interview on CKNW radio.
“With Carole stepping down, so far I’ve only seen speculation about men running for the position of leader,” Schreck said. “That would leave three men in those positions, which would violate the constitution. Hence either Moe or the treasurer will have to step down, and one of the women vice-presidents will have to fill that position in order to come into compliance with the party’s constitution.”
The NDP faced controversy in the 2009 election for another gender rule that prevented men from running in constituencies where an incumbent MLA retires.
The first official candidate for the leadership is Dana Larsen, who declared his intentions last week. Larsen is a founder of the Marijuana Party who resigned as federal NDP candidate for West Vancouver in 2008 after videos surfaced showing him smoking dozens of joints at once, taking LSD and driving a car while under the influence of drugs.
Sihota initially said Larsen was ineligible because his NDP membership had lapsed.
Larsen issued a statement Dec. 30 saying there was a “clerical error” and he had renewed his membership with a donation in November. He added that even if he wasn’t, he would be allowed to join by mid-January and run for the leadership.
The NDP has set April 17 as the date for a membership vote to select a new leader. The party’s constitution states that only those who have been members for three months are eligible to vote.
