Hamilton Centre's NDP MP is writing the leader of his party's Ontario wing to ask: what gives?
Matthew Green's letter to Marit Stiles demands to know why, with an election call potentially days away, the party hasn't yet said whether it will allow MPP Sarah Jama to run for the NDP nomination in the provincial Hamilton Centre riding.
"The Ontario NDP executive made a clear and democratic decision: that all party members in good standing, which includes MPP Sarah Jama, should be allowed to seek the NDP provincial nomination here in Hamilton Centre," he wrote in the letter that he shared with The Trillium, referring to the party executive allowing Jama to submit a vetting package — one of the steps to becoming a candidate again.
"Yet, despite this decision, there has been no action to ensure that a fair a democratic process moves forward," Green wrote. "The question that needs answering is simple: what’s the hold up?"
Green wrote that the NDP "is a party built on principles of democracy, fairness, and accountability" and that refusing to allow Jama to run "would be an erosion of the very democratic values we claim to uphold."
"Hamilton Centre deserves an open and fair nomination race. This community has been through enough uncertainty, and the people here need to know that their voices matter. The longer this process is stalled, the clearer it becomes that centralized power is being prioritized over local democracy. That is unacceptable," he wrote.
"There is only one right course of action: respect the decision of the Ontario NDP executive and let the nomination race proceed. Let the members of Hamilton Centre decide their candidate, free from interference. Anything less is an affront to the values that define us as New Democrats," Green wrote, further calling on Stiles to "do the right thing."
Green previously wrote an op-ed for The Trillium that argued several of the same points.
Jama was elected in 2023 with 54 per cent of the vote after the resignation of former NDP leader Andrea Horwath, who had held the seat for 15 years.
She was kicked out of the ONDP caucus in 2023 after her statements on the Middle East, over what the party said was a failure to work collaboratively. Her defenestration antagonized many of the party's left-wing supporters, some of whom rallied to Jama’s defence in the aftermath.
Stiles has sidestepped the issue, saying only that the nomination process is confidential. The ONDP declined to comment further.
