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Avi Lewis’ acceptance speech upon becoming Leader of the NDP on March 29, 2026. Watch the original:

(This transcript is machine-generated. Unfortunately, portions of the speech spoken in French were not transcribed. Please check against delivery).

Friends, if it isn't already obvious, we are building a new foundation for our party, and we are ready to come roaring back on the Canadian political stage. [cheering] [applause] After seven months of campaigning across this country and speaking to thousands upon thousands of Canadians, here's one thing I know for sure, and I want to say it out loud. Canada, mark your calendar. The NDP comeback starts now. [cheering] [applause]  [applause and cheering]  

You can see it in the lineup featured in this race. Four other candidates, deep new Democrats making a unique and powerful contribution to Neil. You're a sensation and a rising star. [screaming] [cheering] [applause] [cheering]  You've redefined what politics in our party can look like. [applause] Funny, honest, and rooted in indigenous ways.  [cheering] [applause]  Tony, you've made sure that we never forget the importance of changing our undemocratic first pass THE POST SYSTEM.  THANK [cheering] YOU for that.

[applause]  Rob, my brother, you are the real deal and I can't wait to see you walk into Parliament in your work boots.  [applause]  Workers will always be at the heart of the NDP, the one and only original workers party. [cheering and applause]  And Heather, [applause] you know how to win. You help others win and you get things done in Ottawa. Yeah,  your leadership in the House of Commons [applause] denouncing the genocide in Gaza has been profoundly important to us all. [applause and cheering] [applause]  The NDP family is bursting with talent.

Premier Kinew, you're just a natural-b born political powerhouse. And wow, are we lucky to be doing this in Manitoba. [cheering] [applause]  Thank you for providing such a welcoming home to all of us at this convention. [applause] And on a personal note, Bob, our family's friendship spanning two generations means the world to me. Of course, I look forward to connecting with Premier Eby when I'm back in BC and continuing a conversation with other provincial leaders, the premiers in waiting across the country. [cheering]  [applause]  

Elsewhere in Canada, this party is united in our commitment to working people. And no, we will not always agree on every single issue. But here's the thing. Our debates are another sign that our party is back and our tent is growing. It's big enough to hold some differences [cheering] of opinion within it. [applause]  [applause]  

The NDP comeback has arrived just in time. Our party has never been more needed. Friends, Canadians are living on the edge. We're under economic attack from the US. While Donald Trump stomps around the globe, grabbing foreign leaders and oil fields and starting wars he has no idea how to stop.

And at the kitchen table in Canada, there's an even bigger crisis. The everyday emergency of just trying to get by in an impossible economy. Whether you're on a single salary, hustling with multiple gig jobs, or taking care of loved ones, working hard no longer earns you a living.

Look, I know every politician says, "Yeah, it is a shame." And I know every politician says they feel your pain and they claim to be outraged by the sky-high price of everything. But what they won't talk about is why an economy that's rigged for the rich, leaving the vast majority of us behind. [applause] Press economy abandon. [applause]  And what they definitely want won't talk about is who? A tiny group of billionaires that control every part of our economy enabled by their friends among both liberals and conservatives. They'll blame Trump. They'll blame immigrants. They'll blame indigenous land rights. They'll blame anyone but the CEOs, the corner office class to whom they feel accountable.  Only the NDP will tell the truth.

The cost of living emergency is driven by the extreme wealth and power in the hands of the 1%. Super grass illegal.  Five grocery giants who collude and price gouge and gorge on profits. They fix the price of bread for 15 years for heaven's sake.  Three telecoms corporations with mobile data rates that can cost a thousand times what people pay in Finland and the worst customer service on Earth. Seriously, you can watch your best years drain away as you wait on hold just to make some small change to your cell phone plan.

And let's not forget the tech oligarchs and their global digital empires, spying on us from every device, jamming generative AI into every platform. This is more than a rigged economy. It's a war on working people.  And it's why [applause] And it's why you're in shock at the grocery checkout in tears looking at your bills at the end of the month. It's because the wealth of this country is being hoovered up by a corporate elite who are extracting it from you every single day. It's immoral. It's unreasonable. It's uncanadian. And we cannot let it stand. [cheering]  [applause]  

Friends, we are also at a crossroads in our history, in our world, with what remains of the international order being torn to shreds by Donald Trump. In this moment of intense uncertainty, how our country needs a vision to guide the path we take. One that makes us safer and more secure. One shaped by values shared by most Canadians: fairness, compassion, equality, international solidarity and love for the natural world. [cheering] [applause]  

But that's that's not where we're headed now. The prime minister is very popular at the moment. He's a smart guy and most Canadians still want to give him the benefit of the doubt. That's fair. But I think when you connect the dots, his moves do not add up to the vision that Canadians truly want and deserve in this perilous moment. [applause]  

Half a trillion dollars in a decade for weapons to make Canada a major arms exporter in a war torn world.  Slashing our cherished public services,  sweeping aside indigenous rights.  Full steam ahead. no regulations on AI and pipelines.  

In the last federal election, Canadians voted to say no to Trump and Trumpism. What they're getting instead is our government following the US into a future of wars, fossil fuels, austerity, and jobkilling generative AI.  

Our NDP has a different offer for this country. Our plan is to trump the economy by investing massively in Canadian economic independence using the unmatched power of public ownership to ensure the fundamentals of a good life. [applause] [cheering] A network of public providers for food, phones, and internet. [cheering] OF PUBLIC HOUSING DEVELOPER AND PUBLIC CONSTRUCTION companies to build MILLIONS OF NON-MARKET HOMES, [cheering] a 21st century ELECTRICAL GRID, AN EV BUS REVOLUTION, AND a heat pump in every home. BUILT WITH CANADIAN STEEL, CREATING TENS OF THOUSANDS OF UNIONIZED JOBS. [cheering] [applause] investing in the care economy as true nation building. The education, health care, elder care, and child care that holds our social fabric together.

[applause]  And finishing Tommy's dream,  eyes, teeth, mental health, medicine, they are all part of your health. THEY HAVE TO ALL BE PART OF OUR UNIVERSAL PUBLIC HEALTH CARE SYSTEM. [cheering] [applause] [cheering] [cheering]

If we want Canadians to feel more secure, then we have to invest in our security and we can. [cheering] [cheering] [cheering] [cheering] [applause] [screaming]  [cheering and applause]  [cheering]