Kevin Chief won’t run for NDP leadership

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This article was published 21/09/2016 (3560 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For Kevin Chief, it came down to a choice between politics and family. And family won.

Chief, considered by a good many NDP insiders to be the best and brightest hope for a quick rebuild, has decided not to throw his hat in the ring when party faithful gather in October 2017 to select a new leader.

In an interview, Chief said his family situation was the determining factor. The Point Douglas MLA has three children — a five-year-old, a two-year-old and a five-month-old — who are his main focus right now.

“Having a baby four days before the election was big for me,” Chief said. “It totally changed my perspective on politics and life.”

Chief is well aware of both the risks and rewards of taking over the NDP at this juncture in its evolution. Thrashed in the last election, the NDP remains a deeply divided, barely functional entity. Old grudges stemming back to the decision by dissident cabinet ministers to try and force former premier Greg Selinger from his post are still evident in NDP caucus.

Chief is believed to be the best option to replace Selinger and heal the divisions within the party. Although he supported Selinger during the leadership challenge, he maintained a low enough profile to make him a palatable option, regardless of camp or faction. NDP insiders believed Chief, articulate and charismatic, would have provided a fast-track back to competitiveness. Particularly given the fact that Premier Brian Pallister’s personal popularity has lagged behind that of his party.

However, it’s also hard to argue with the reasons for his decision. Chief was raised in the North End of Winnipeg by his father, and has always had a deep commitment to family. “I know that my dad would have wanted me to be there for my boys,” Chief said.

Whoever takes over the leadership next year will likely be looking at an extended period of time in opposition, perhaps as long or longer than the 11 years that former NDP premier Gary Doer sat across from Tory governments in the late 1980s through to the late 1990s.

Chief said he was not afraid of the hard work, and indeed he has a reputation as being one the hardest working politicians, both in cabinet when the NDP was in power and as a constituency representative. However, the demands of rebuilding the NDP as opposition leader would have completely eclipsed his life and his family.

“The hard parts of the job are the ones I think I do best at,” Chief said. “Bringing people together, raising money. I’m not afraid to do that work. But I know there is so much to do, that even if I got time to spend with my kids, I wouldn’t really be with them. I’d always be studying up on something, always taking phone calls, always working. It totally absorbs you.”

Without Chief, it is unclear who will step up to take on the challenge of leading the NDP in opposition. Rookie MLAs Nahanni Fontaine and Wab Kinew are thought to be possible candidates. Winnipeg City Coun. Brian Mayes has also publicly said he might be interested in the job.

Chief said that for the foreseeable future, he will continue to represent Point Douglas in the legislature and work to support the next leader in his or her bid to rebuild and reunite the party.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca