If former federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh had a crystal ball into the future, would he still have signed the 2022 supply-and-confidence agreement (SACA) with the Liberal government? Would working with the minority government on a case-by-case basis have saved the NDP from being effectively wiped out of the House of Commons in the recent 2025 elections? I cannot say. That SACA put the NDP (and Singh) between a rock and a hard place; albeit in that space the NDP managed to sow and harvest some great goods for Canadians.
Singh’s legacy is complicated. It’s hard to say definitively whether he was a success or failure for the NDP. Under his eight-year leadership, the party slowly withered from 44 seats to a mere seven, thereby losing all privileges in the House of Commons – party status, speaking time, funding, resources and seats on committees. It’s difficult for the federal NDP to get news coverage on a good day, and now perhaps it will become even more of an uphill battle to convince mainstream outlets to take them seriously.
Even though electorally the NDP lost, Canadians won because of Singh’s decision to sign SACA. It was a risky decision – in becoming the first NDP leader to formally sign such an agreement with the Liberals, Singh stood to lose credibility within the party, and respect among progressives who despise close kinship with the Liberals. It was a risky decision, and one that has paid off for Canadians.
Thanks to SACA, Canadians now have access to a national dental care and pharmacare programs, the biggest expansion to Canada’s public healthcare system since its inception, as well as a national child care program, 12 paid sick days for federal workers and anti-scab legislation. These are by no means small wins, and Jagmeet Singh remained true to the party’s social democratic and labour roots and put his neck out for policies that would benefit the many, not just the few. He deserves full recognition for that.
I do believe history will be kind to Jagmeet Singh; the NDP just needs to make sure that the Liberals don’t rewrite history by taking credit for these victories. If they are able to write successful messaging to remind Canadians what they won, then just as Jack Layton is remembered for resurrecting the NDP’s presence in the House of Commons, Singh will be remembered for securing big social improvements for Canadians.
Beyond Jagmeet Singh’s legacy, however, lots of rebuilding remains ahead for the NDP. They are facing an identity crisis; the public doesn’t know how to differentiate them from the Liberals – this, too, is a by-product of SACA. In the end, one can argue that SACA came back to haunt Singh, who ultimately couldn’t convince voters why they shouldn’t vote for the Liberals after supporting their minority government for three years. How much the NDP can accomplish as a seven-member caucus remains to be seen, and progressives are yearning for more from the NDP than just being the voice of conscience. The NDP’s existence sets Canada apart from the US – we have a party rooted in social democratic values to ensure strong public services (healthcare, unemployment benefits, education) remain guaranteed for Canadians even as the Liberals and Conservatives try to starve and eliminate them.
Whether Singh was a successful leader is definitely not a cut-and-dry answer. It’s complex. Politics right now is complex: Canada’s back is up against the wall because its closest ally has metamorphosed into a wolf that has resulted in a strong sense of pride and nationalism reverberating in the country now. For now, while the threat of Donald Trump remains and people have rallied behind the Liberals, the NDP must figure out how to be united while remaining distinct. Ultimately, Singh chose cooperation and Canadians, and that, too, is a kind of legacy.
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Nick Seebruch, editor
