B.C. NDP election loss not an issue of leadership: party president

VANCOUVER – B.C. New Democrat Party Leader Adrian Dix has the support of the party’s president to continue on as leader, despite the surprising election loss this week.

Moe Sihota says it will do the party no good to have a revolving door on leadership.

Rather, he says the New Democrats as a team will have to look at what happened to leave the party with fewer seats than it had heading into the campaign.

The former NDP cabinet minister blames the election loss on fear-mongering by the Liberals, complacency by supporters and — to a lesser extent — vote-splitting with the B.C. Green party.

Dix has been silent since election night, when voters defied all polls and pundits and gave the incumbent Liberals an increased majority government.

Sihota says the NDP has the money to hold a leadership race but he believes it’s not what the party needs.