Avi Lewis launches NDP leadership bid promising a 'public option' for groceries

OTTAWA — Filmmaker and activist Avi Lewis formally entered the NDP leadership race on Friday with a populist message, promising to champion “the many” over “the money.”

Lewis vowed in a slickly produced launch video to take the fight to the corporate oligarchs who are “hoarding extreme wealth (and) foreclosing on our shared future.”

“These days, every politician claims to be shocked by the cost (of living),” said Lewis, dressed casually in shirtsleeves while walking the streets of downtown Vancouver.

“What they don’t talk about is why: the billions in profit for the tiny group of corporations that control every part of our economy. Three phone providers, three grocery giants, five oil companies and the five big banks that fund them,” he added.

Lewis also said he’d fight for a wealth tax, a national cap on rent increases and a “public option” for groceries, possibly taking notes from democratic socialist New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani .

“Elites want us to believe that these kinds of changes are impossible … but our job as New Democrats is to do exactly that,” said Lewis.

He also touted a Green New Deal that would create “millions of good-paying jobs.”

Lewis, 58, is the son of former Ontario NDP leader Stephen Lewis. His grandfather, David Lewis, helped found the NDP in 1961.

He’s run unsuccessfully for Vancouver-area seats in the last two federal elections, finishing third both times.

Lewis is married to activist and author Naomi Klein. The two were the driving force behind the Leap Manifesto , a 2015 document that set out 15 points for steering Canada’s economy away from fossil fuels .

The NDP adopted a resolution recognizing the Leap Manifesto as an aspirational document at it’s 2016 convention.

Lewis is the third candidate to publicly declare his intent to lead the NDP, following self-described “agitator” Yves Engler  and Ontario farmer Tony McQuail . Edmonton MP Heather McPherson is widely expected to soon be entering the fray .

Leadership aspirants have until Jan. 1, 2026 to enter the race .

The NDP’s next leader will be announced in Winnipeg , as part of the party’s national convention on March 29, 2026.

National Post rmohamed@postmedia.com

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