The New Democratic Party of Manitoba has held seven leadership conventions to select a party leader since its founding in 1961. In each instance, the leader was chosen by secret-ballot voting among delegates. The results of these votes are listed below. The leaders of the party's predecessors, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (Manitoba Section) and the Independent Labour Party (Manitoba) had all been elected unopposed.[1]
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on November 4, 1961)
| Candidate | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| Russell Paulley | winner | |
| Cliff Matthews | . | |
| Hans Fries | . |
Paulley's victory was reported in the Winnipeg Free Press on November 6, 1961. The numerical totals were not released, but it is generally accepted that Paulley won by a significant majority. In 1968, he was challenged for the party leadership by fellow legislator Sidney Green.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on November 3, 1968)
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russell Paulley | 213 | 55.91 | |
| Sidney Green | 168 | 44.09 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 381 | 100.00 |
(Results taken from The Globe and Mail, 4 November 1968.)
Paulley resigned as party leader in 1969.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on June 7, 1969)
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edward Schreyer | 506 | 74.08 | |
| Sidney Green | 177 | 25.92 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 683 | 100.00 |
(Results taken from The Globe and Mail, 9 June 1969.)
Schreyer resigned as party leader in January 1979, after being appointed Governor-General of Canada on the advice of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. In the same month, Howard Pawley was chosen as interim leader of the NDP's legislative caucus, defeating Sidney Green and Saul Cherniack in a closed-session vote.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on November 4, 1979)
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Pawley | 467 | 63.36 | |
| Muriel Smith | 217 | 29.44 | |
| Russell Doern | 53 | 7.19 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 737 | 100.00 |
A fourth candidate, Nick Ternette, withdrew from the contest on November 2, 1979, and backed Muriel Smith.
(Results taken from The Globe and Mail, 5 November 1979).
Pawley resigned as leader in 1988, after his government lost a vote of confidence in the legislature. He continued to serve as premier in a caretaker government, and the NDP held a snap leadership convention in the opening weeks of the 1988 provincial election.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on March 30, 1988)
First ballot:
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Doer | 631 | 37.94 | |
| Len Harapiak | 543 | 32.65 | |
| Andy Anstett | 317 | 19.06 | |
| Maureen Hemphill | 167 | 10.04 | |
| Conrad Santos | 5 | 0.30 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 1,663 | 100.00 |
Hemphill and Santos both fell below the 15% quota required to stay on the ballot and were eliminated. Hemphill supported Anstett on the second ballot.
Second ballot:
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Doer | 744 | 44.93 | |
| Len Harapiak | 622 | 37.56 | |
| Andy Anstett | 290 | 17.51 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 1,656 | 100.00 |
Anstett was eliminated. Both Anstett and Hemphill supported Harapiak on the third ballot.
Third ballot:
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Doer | 835 | 50.64 | |
| Len Harapiak | 814 | 49.36 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 1,649 | 100.00 |
(Results taken from The Globe and Mail and Winnipeg Free Press, 31 March 1988.)
Gary Doer led the Manitoba NDP until 2009 and served as premier of Manitoba from 1999 until 2009.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on October 17, 2009)
See main article: 2009 New Democratic Party of Manitoba leadership election.
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greg Selinger | 1,317 | 65.75 | |
| Steve Ashton | 685 | 34.20 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 2,002 | 100.00 |
Greg Selinger became leader and was sworn in as Premier on October 19, 2009.
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on March 8, 2015)
See main article: 2015 New Democratic Party of Manitoba leadership election.
The leadership election was called by Selinger as a test of his leadership following a caucus revolt.First ballot
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greg Selinger | 612 | 36.02 | |
| Theresa Oswald | 575 | 33.84 | |
| Steve Ashton | 502 | 29.54 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 1,699 | 100.00 |
Second ballot
| Candidate | Votes[3] | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greg Selinger | 759 | 50.93 | |
| Theresa Oswald | 726 | 48.72 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 1,490 | 100.00 |
(Held in Winnipeg, Manitoba on September 16, 2017)
See main article: 2017 New Democratic Party of Manitoba leadership election.
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wab Kinew | 728 | 74.3 | |
| Steve Ashton | 253 | 25.7 | |
| Total Valid Votes | 981 | 100.00 |