Veteran NDP MP Charlie Angus has announced he will not be seeking re-election after serving in the House of Commons for 20 years and winning his riding in seven different elections.
“After seven elections, 20 years of service in Parliament, and the privilege of being the longest-serving MP in Timmins history, it is time to pass on the baton,” Mr. Angus said in his statement.
Mr. Angus spoke of the challenges representing rural areas in Northern Ontario, and thanked his team for their service and efforts in the face of “floods, evacuations, horrific suicide crises and, more recently, the emergence of climate fires.”
Regarding the future of the NDP in Northern Ontario, Mr. Angus said it was an “excellent time” for a new candidate and said he expected they would introduce new ideas.
For his own future, Mr. Angus said he would look toward advocating for indigenous people and environmental issues, saying he wanted to return to “grassroots activism.”
The announcement marks the end of the political career of one of the NDP’s longest-serving MPs, although he did not match the record of the NDP’s Bill Blaikie who left politics after 29 years as an MP in 2008.
Going into next year’s federal election, polling for Mr. Angus no longer has him leading in the riding, with the polling website 338Canada stating that the Conservatives hold a slight lead over the NDP and have a 56 percent chance of winning the seat as of March 31.
During his 20 years in federal politics, Mr. Angus has been a main pillar of the NDP. Following the departure of Tom Mulcair as leader of the NDP in 2017, Mr. Angus threw his hat into the leadership race, coming second with 19.4 percent of the vote, losing to current leader Jagmeet Singh.
Federal NDP MPs Carol Hughes and Rachel Blaney also announced on April 4 that they won’t run again in the next federal election, saying they want more family time. Ms. Hughes serves the Ontario riding of Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing while Rachel Blaney represents North Island—Powell River in B.C.
