Entering his final days as a member of parliament, Kennedy Stewart says he has “no regrets” entering a crowded race to become mayor of Vancouver and potentially leaving his seat empty for over a year.
Stewart, who was elected under the NDP banner in Burnaby Douglas in 2011 and in Burnaby South in 2015, plans to tender his resignation in July or August.
He said he is working with his staff to “tidy up” more than 1,000 constituent case files before turning to campaigning on the other side of Boundary Road full time.
He is running as an independent to replace Gregor Robertson as mayor of Vancouver in the Oct. 20 civic election.
“This wasn’t an easy decision but I do feel like I’ve been a good representative for seven years both in Burnaby Douglas and Burnaby South,” he said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will have 180 days to set a date for an election to replace Stewart, but the vote does have to fall within that six-month period. That means Trudeau could choose to leave the seat empty until the next federal election on Oct. 21, 2019.
“The prime minister really isn’t asking my opinion,” Stewart said.
“He’s going to make his decision and it will be based on his political needs ... what he thinks is most politically expedient for the Liberal Party.”
Either way, Stewart said, Burnaby South residents won’t be without strong representation in Ottawa. His staff will continue to work both in Ottawa and in his constituency office and the NDP’s party whip, Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet, will take on his parliamentary duties.
If a by-election is called before October 2019, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh may run to replace Stewart. New Democrats chose Singh, a former Ontario member of provincial parliament, to helm the federal party last year despite his lack of a federal seat.
“There’s been a lot of discussion about it (Singh running in Burnaby), but no final decision has been made,” Stewart said. “It’s definitely a viable option for him.”
