(Ottawa) Former NDP leader Ed Broadbent has died at age 87. The Broadbent Institute that he founded made the announcement Thursday afternoon. First elected to the House of Commons in 1968, he subsequently led the New Democratic Party (NDP) for 14 years.
“It is impossible to travel across the country without meeting people who were touched by Ed’s compassion, commitment and fierce intelligence,” responded the leader of the New Democratic Party, Jagmeet Singh, in a press release.
“He never lost sight of the people we are fighting for. He was deeply attached to the values of the Canadian working classes and their struggles.”
Mr. Singh stressed that his predecessor was “generous with his time and talent”, not hesitating to give him advice or campaign alongside him.
Mr. Broadbent was a federal MP for 21 years and leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 1975 to 1989. He returned to the political scene in 2004 at the request of Jack Layton, who then led the political party. His last term ended in 2006 after the election that brought Stephen Harper to power.
Daily life Globe and Mail at the time named him “nation builder of the year”. It described him as an “honest politician” and “a man who stood for civility in the face of the politics of contempt.”
Further details will follow.