Contenders looking to succeed Jagmeet Singh as leader of the New Democratic Party will be forced to abide by a “progressive” policy when collecting signatures of support. Applicants will require 500 signatures, 50 of which must come from each of the five regions of the country, in addition to no more than half of those signatures being from straight men.

On Wednesday's Buffalo Roundtable, panellists Sheila Gunn Reid, Lise Merle and National Telegraph editor Wyatt Claypool shared their thoughts on this uniquely NDP idea.

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“It demonstrates how anti-men they are,” said Wyatt Claypool. “They could have just said you at least need 50% who identify as women. They had to say, you cannot have more than 50% cisgendered men. Goodness, they do not have a problem with too many men in their parties,” he added.

A further requirement demands signatures from “equity-seeking groups,” a phrase Sheila Gunn Reid said was something she'd “never actually say in real life unless it were written in front” of her to say.

“I love this for the NDP,” chimed in Lise Merle. “Because welcome to the LGBT-NDP or the DEI-NDP.” The shift towards the progressive left “decimated” the party over the last several elections, she added. “So, what is the NDP going to do? They're going to latch harder onto the identity politics. I cannot wait until this party of harping, crazy, woke left academics and overachievers is decimated into the ground.”