#ndpldr Roundup

Assorted links and information as the NDP's leadership race reaches its conclusion this weekend.

- Jeremy Appel takes a look at the most recent fund-raising reports, which show Avi Lewis' lead reaching the level where his total donations exceed those of his opponents combined - even as he's relied on smaller donations than the other candidates. 

- Curtis Fric examines polling on the apparent openness of voters to considering the NDP - though it's worth being careful about putting too much stock into immediate impressions of a party which has been engaged in a leadership campaign (and lacking a permanent leader) rather than focusing on defining itself to the public. And on that front, the Angus Reid Institute's polling on the lack of familiarity with the leadership candidates signals both that there's plenty of work to be done in making an introduction, but also that there's plenty of room to make a strong first impression. 

- The Canadian Press reports on the candidates' positions on pursuing a seat in the House of Commons. And for all the focus of Heather McPherson's surrogates on proximity to power, it's striking to see her message framing the ultimate point of the leadership in terms of the ability to ask questions in opposition rather than building a voter coalition capable of winning government. 

- Finally, Linda McQuaig makes the case for a left-wing populist being exactly what the NDP needs in response to the concentration of wealth and power. And Desmond Cole's conversation with Leah Gazan likewise addresses the importance of unapologetic socialism rather than muddled messaging. 

Leadership 2026 Candidate Profile - Avi Lewis

What We Knew

While Lewis’ campaign narrative has normally been framed in terms of his family history in the NDP, the aspect of his track record that strikes me as more significant is his time as a journalist. While it’s been some time since I found political panel and interview shows to be worth much attention, Lewis’ intelligence and insight on CounterSpin both made for worthwhile watching, and earned him credibility with all kinds of political actors.

It’s always a challenge for an NDP leader to both earn attention and be taken seriously within the broader political scene - and Lewis’ track record gives him a major head start on that front, even as he also laps the field in progressive movement credibility. 

The challenge for Lewis has been to translate those traits within the membership, particularly when they haven’t yet resulted in riding-level electoral success, and when much of the party establishment seems fairly determined to stop him.

What We’ve Learned

In another field of candidates, Lewis might have been vulnerable to being beaten out in personability or French language skills. In this one, he’s been the standout in both communications and organizational strength - while also giving NDP members plenty of intriguing ideas to work with. And while he’s taken the few barbs that have been launched during the course of the campaign, he’s responded with messages of unity without sacrificing principle in the process.

What He’s Proposing

Maybe most ambitiously - if also most optimistically - Lewis’ plan to turn constituency associations into community organizing hubs on a systematic basis looks to be an ideal fit for the political moment. We can count on the next few years featuring plenty more abuses from the Trump regime as well as inspiring responses at the community level; the path toward rebuilding involves turning increases outrage and awareness into lasting involvement.

What to Watch For

While it’s rightly been pointed out that Lewis’ fund-raising prowess (in both donors and dollars) likely signals a lead in the campaign, it’s also worth noting that he doesn’t seem to have an advantage on the same scale as Jack Layton or Jagmeet Singh in the campaigns where they cruised to victory. 

At this point, the race seems likely to take more than one ballot to decide, which would require Lewis to earn down-ballot support to come out ahead. And if the next candidates in line end up seeing their support go to each other, Lewis may need to count on a push from Johnston and McQuail supporters to put him over the top.

[Edit: corrected name of Lewis’ show.]

Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Casey Newton notes that repeated studies showing the distorting effects of X and other social media sites are making it impossible to pretend that major tech platforms deserve the protection of a presumption of neutrality. And Raphael Satter and Alexandra Alper report on the Trump regime's demand that other countries avoid asserting any protection for data integrity or public privacy where its tech giants think there's something to be exploited.

- Rory White investigates the consultants looking to overwhelm political conversations with AI talking points. And Brett McKay reports on the right-wing astroturf entities who are skirting or deliberately violating Canadian election laws in order to flood the airwaves with election ads without providing timely (or in some cases any) disclosure of who's funding them. 

- A.R. Moxon discusses why toxic masculinity is damaging to the people who succumb to it, while recognition of others' humanity is necessary to the flourishing of one's own. And Kelly Hayes writes that it's no surprise that people who have been systematically isolated are unable to understand the connections being made in Minnesota where people are building support networks. 

- Finally, Sharlene Gandhi examines data from 211 calls which shows that housing and mental health are the most glaring unmet needs among people calling for crisis support. And Simon Enoch discusses Saskatchewan's continued place as the province with the highest rates of child poverty - which is only becoming both broader and deeper under the Sask Party. 

Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Charlie Angus discusses the realities of being next door to a gangster regime. And Navigator Research finds that a majority of Americans recognize that they live in an authoritarian state rather than a democracy. 

- Norm Berlatsky discusses how even the eventual departure of Donald Trump from power is far from enough to salvage a functional political system. And Hamilton Nolan examines how the uber-rich are already distorting U.S. politics, while noting that there's alarming potential for matters to get far worse. 

- An anonymous writer offers a grim look at the abuse and objectification which awaits teenaged girls online. But lest we be too quick to accept age restrictions as an answer, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Michael O'Flaherty warns of the problems with banning large classes of users rather than making social media platforms safe for everybody. 

- Finally, Rebecca Solnit writes about the decades of activism which have finally led to the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and other abusers in Jeffrey Epstein's network. 

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- John Ripton writes about the connection between the egregious concentration of wealth and the rise of fascist politics. And Virginia Heffernan points out how the uber-rich have used their wealth to fund eugenics, while Kristen Toussaint discusses their similar obsession with climate denialism. 

- Meanwhile, Lucas Amin and Peter Geoghegan examine how corporate donations - particularly from companies under the control of extremely wealthy individuals - are distorting UK politics. 

- Jonathan Cohn discusses how the FDA's refusal to even review new vaccines is a threat to health around the globe. And Max Kozlov notes that the Trump regime is scrubbing any suggestion that the U.S.' public health institutions might prepare for or mitigate future disease outbreaks. 

- Charlie Warzel laments the development of nihilist cultures online. But while it's worth pointing out the presence of dangerous actors, Brian Beutler argues that MAGA has never really succeeded in a broad-based culture war.

-  Finally, Duane Bratt makes the case for Alberta to stay in Canada. And Robert Currie points out how there's no legal path to separation through a referendum - though that's exactly why the separatists' collaboration with a Trump regime which operates under a "just try and stop us" mentality is so dangerous and treasonous. 

#ndpldr Links

I haven't yet put together the candidate profiles and other posts I'm planning for the ongoing NDP leadership campaign. But for now, I'll take time to survey a few noteworthy developments.

- Theresa Lubovitz takes a look at the fund-raising numbers to the end of Q4 2025, and notes that Avi Lewis has a lead over the other two primary candidates combined in both funds raised and donations received. (And on the latter front, Heather McPherson's lead in Alberta makes for the only single province where any other candidate has managed to lead the pack - signalling that Lewis' support base is widespread as well as responsive.)

- Meanwhile, McPherson has been identified as having leads in name recognition within the general public, as well as support by description among potential NDP voters (though Ashton's description interestingly holds a lead among actual NDP supporters).   

- Adam King reviews Lewis' labour platform as identifying and addressing issues far beyond the traditional sphere of labour policy which affect worker solidarity and the balance of class power. 

- Ali Terrenoire writes about the problems with Canada's left being limited to trying to boost the NDP as a parliamentary party. And Martin Lukacs makes the case for leftists to join the party and throw their support behind Lewis. 

- Finally, David Thurton reports on Naheed Nenshi's message seeking to have the federal leader defer to provincial interests. But it's worth noting how the difference he points out may actually signal one of the concerns with McPherson as an alternative: the federal NDP isn't able to limit its ambition to trying to flip swing voters through government fatigue in a two-party system, and any leader who relies on that model where it doesn't apply figures to make little progress in the effort to rebuild. 

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Julieta Manrique et al. study the prevalence of COVID-19 after infection - and find that even in patients who aren't immunocompromised, it manages to spread and replicate in most organs. Julia Wright, Dick Zoutman, Mark Ungrin and Ryan Tennant discuss how universities are failing to take post-COVID conditions seriously. Brett McKay reports on the hundreds of COVID outbreaks in Alberta acute care facilities in 2023-24 - even as the UCP torqued any reviews to insist it should have done even less. And Freja Kirsebom et al. study the continued effectiveness of COVID vaccines in preventing symptoms and hospital admissions among pregnant individuals.

- Jenna Hennebry writes that the real problem with Canada' temporary foreign worker policy is the systemic vulnerability it imposes on workers - which won't be improved in the slightest by forcing workers to compete for fewer positions.

- Glyn Moody discusses how the first version of right-to-repair legislation in Canada is almost entirely useless since it only allows for single-use fixes rather than any sharing of solutions.

- Finally, Natascha Kennedy highlights how big money is threatening democracy in the UK and elsewhere - and how prohibitions against corporate donations are a necessary element in reducing the danger. And Jon Queally reports on Bernie Sanders' message that the most important priority needs to be to overcome the global oligarchy.

Thursday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Paul Abela writes that the continual concentration of wealth is patently unsustainable. Alex Himelfarb discusses how neoliberalism has laid the groundwork for the violent authoritarianism of Donald Trump and his fascist fellow travelers. And Karen Landmand examines how private equity's takeover of health care in the U.S. is endangering patients' lives while driving health care workers out of their professions. 

- Josh Pringle reports on a new survey showing Canadian workers see substantial benefits from remote work (even as many employers have sought to put an end to it). And Cory Doctorow juxtaposes the impetus toward in-person control and extensive supervision with Wells Fargo's complete neglect of well-being to the point of leaving a dead employee rot for days. 

- Katia Lo Innes and Tannara Yelland take a look at the double-dipped donations from the corporate elite which are funding the Saskatchewan Party's election campaign. And Ricardo Acuna discusses how the UCP is determine to avoid anything resembling fair taxation. 

- Finally, Stephen Magusiak exposes the hasty scrubbing of the BC Cons' platform, while Andrew MacLeod points out a few questions which should be directed at John Rustad if he deigned to interact with actual journalists. And Rumneek Johal notes that even the sanitized version of the party's plans includes using the notwithstanding clause to lock up people dealing with substance addiction. 

Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Melissa Lem and Samantha Green write about the push from the health care community to ensure that fossil fuel companies can't keep deceiving the public about the harm caused by their operations. And John Woodside reports on the majority popular support for a windfall tax on oil companies - even in the provinces where they've entirely captured the political class. 

- Meanwhile, Max Kozlov discusses new research showing that the oil industry's pivot to plastics stands to create a whole new set of harms to people's health. 

- Peter Walker reports on a new study showing that policies supporting low vehicle traffic produce immense fiscal and health benefits. And for anybody needing an additional push away from car culture, Kashmir Hill exposes how auto manufacturers are tracking and sharing details about drivers' activity with data brokers.  

- Ricardo Tranjan writes about the effectiveness of rent controls in reducing housing costs - while refuting the myth that they do anything to limit the supply of homes. 

- Finally, Kate Schneider reports on the private parties being held in millionaires' mansions to facilitate  Pierre Poilievre's pay-for-access fund-raisers. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Joshua Cohen writes that the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the first sustained streak of declining  global life expectancy in over 60 years - even as governments everywhere attempt to pretend the threat has passed. And the Washington Post's editorial board offers a reminder of the need to keep masking in order to reduce both the spread and severity of COVID. 

- Joel Lexchin writes about the lack of regulation of pharmaceutical advertising in Canada. And Andre Picard salutes British Columbia's progress in making contraception universally and freely available, while imploring other provinces to follow suit. 

- Owen Schalk discusses how the Libs' fossil fuel subsidies are merely providing fuel for an ongoing climate emergency. Damian Carrington reports on the "super-emitting" methane leaks could singlehandedly push the Earth past its carbon budget to stay under 1.5 degrees of warming. And Jeff Masters and Bob Henson explain why even relatively small temperature increases result in significantly more severe weather. 

- Gordon Laxer writes that while Canada should be investigation foreign interference in our elections, we should be paying more attention to the corporate actors who do so with a veneer of local presence while directing our policies for the benefit of foreign owners. 

- Amy Hanauer notes that the best way to address concerns about public debt is to make sure the rich pay their fair share. 

- Finally, Alexander Hinton writes that spin about "lone wolf" extremist attacks serve as a dangerous distraction from the networks of eliminationist rhetoric which invariably underlie the danger. 

Sunday Evening Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Marianne Guenot reports on a World Health Organization-backed report confirming that political leaders could have averted the spread of COVID-19, but failed to do so. And CBC News reports on the fears of workers facing unmasked customers and management unwilling to look out for their health.

- Adam Peleshanty takes note of the spread of another season of extreme drought across the Prairies. And Max Fawcett writes that Alberta is engaged in delay tactics against making oil companies clean up their messes at the worst possible time. 

- Duncan Fraser McLachlan reports on the work tenants have done organizing against renovictions in one Montreal apartment building.  

- The Canadian Press reports on the push from the NDP and health care providers to get the Trudeau Libs to live up to their promises (and indeed the recommendations of their own panel) on pharmacare. And Brandon Doucet notes that the Libs are standing in the way of any move toward universal dental care as well.

- Meanwhile, Michael Geist writes about the problems with the Libs' Bill C-10 (and the gaslighting campaign being used to try to push it through Parliament).

- Finally, Arthur White-Crummey reports on the massive backing from one Alberta oil contractor which funded more than half of the Buffalo Party's emergence in Saskatchewan - showing that the risk of parties developing as wholly-owned subsidiaries of one or more wealthy people is coming to pass.

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Jim Stanford weighs in on the need for increased worker input into economic decision-making - particularly as change is otherwise imposed by management with little regard for the people most affected.

- Nathaniel Erskine-Smith makes the case for a wealth tax to recoup some of the windfall the wealthiest few have received during the coronavirus pandemic - though it's of course worth noting that more substantial policy would be even better, and that he and his party have voted against the NDP's efforts to pursue anything of the sort. And Umair Haque rightly questions the U.S.' idolization of the people who extract the most from their communities for their own personal gain. 

- Joe Roberts offers a reminder that poverty is the result of policy decisions which can easily be changed if we care enough to ensure people have a secure income. And Marc Lee pushes for British Columbia to adopt the poverty reduction proposals - including both improved income supports and social infrastructure - proposed by that province's basic income panel.

- Max Fawcett writes about the developing conflict between an oil and gas industry seeking to keep wringing profits out of dirty energy regardless of the impact on anybody else, and a financial sector coming to terms with the broader costs of carbon pollution. And Nicholas Rivers, Kathryn Harrison and Marc Jaccard discuss the problems with relying on offset credits rather than real emission reductions in trying to avert a climate breakdown, while Alexander Quon reports on the foolishness of Scott Moe's plan to turn carbon pricing into a fossil fuel subsidy in order to avoid any emission reductions.

- Finally, Andrea Reimer discusses how Canada can keep big money out of politics - while pointing out how Saskatchewan ranks as the worst of the worst in allowing it unfettered influence over the political scene.

Saturday #yqrvotes Links

Having previously posted on voters' options, I'll offer one more roundup of the latest on Regina's municipal elections (for those who haven't joined the crowds voting early). 

- The lead up to election day has seen the Regina Public School Board take some additional steps to protect students, including by making masking mandatory at all ages and reducing the capacity of high schools by 50%. (Of course, it would help if either of those steps involved meaningful support from the province.)

- Sask Dispatch's coverage features Richelle Dubois and Michelle Stewart discussing defunding the police; John Klein and Carla Harris each writing about what the election means for transit; Joey Reynolds and Florence Stratton writing about ending homelessness; Saba Dar weighing in on the environment; and Jim Gallagher discussing Wascana Park.

- Heidi Atter reports on the appropriate calls for Regina's mayoral candidates to disclose their donors before the election - and the unfortunate choice of the main contenders to show no interest in letting people know what they're voting for.

- And Atter also reports on the results of EnviroCollective's candidate survey on renewable energy.

- Finally, Heather Persson makes the case for residents to exercise their right to shape the future of Saskatchewan's municipalities.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- The Globe and Mail's editorial board argues that the Libs should be putting their energy toward dealing with COVID-19, not setting up games of chicken over basic parliamentary accountability. And Cam Holmstrom highlights the NDP's role as the adults in the room.

- Daniele Zanotti, Safia Ahmed and Sophia Ikura discuss how to slow the spread of COVID-19 through vulnerable communities. David Salisbury writes about the dangers of relying on an immediate vaccine to control the coronavirus. Alexandra Rendely and Courtney Sas warn that we can't afford to shut down operating rooms due to a second wave. Devabhaktuni Srikrishna, Abraar Karan, David Beier and Ranu Dhillon argue that we should be ensuring that essential workers have better masks, rather than accepting the stopgaps put in place at the outset of the pandemic. And Zak Vescera reports on the growing concerns that long-term care residents will again face extended isolation due to poor policy choices.

- David Suzuki implores the federal government not to give in to fossil fuel lobbyists by weakening clean fuel standards. And Fiona Harvey reports on new research from Oxfam showing that poor countries which haven't contributed significantly to climate breakdown are incurring massive debt dealing with its consequences.

- Finally, Press Progress exposes the corporate pressure groups pushing anti-union propaganda into British Columbia workplaces. And Tara Carman reports on the effect the ban on corporate and union donations has had in ensuring parties have to engage with individual donors, rather than being able to run on institutional funding.

On national efforts

I've previously made my pitch as to why progressive people across Canada should pitch in to help support the Saskatchewan NDP's cause in this month's provincial election. But I'll highlight The Regina Mom's push to support a strong group of female candidates in particular:

We’re the Wild West of campaign financing. And the women running as candidates for the Saskatchewan New Democrats need support from Canadians everywhere if there’s any hope of ever defeating the SaskParty! Anyone living in Canada, any Canadian living abroad, and any corporation in Canada can donate to a Saskatchewan political party. So bring it, Canada, we need it. 

...

Saskatchewan will head to the polls on October 26. NDP leader, Dr. Ryan Meili, has gathered an incredible team of talent. Almost half the candidates around him are women and all candidates are committed to a progressive people first platform that includes pay equity legislation, a $15 minimum wage, $25/day childcare, and the return of the Saskatchewan Transportation Company (STC).

...

This is a crucial election in Saskatchewan, one with great potential. We know that women’s voices need to be heard. We in Saskatchewan know that by working together, we can make a better world. 

Sunday #skvotes Links

The latest from Saskatchewan's provincial election campaign.

- PressProgress traces nearly half of the Saskatchewan Party's donations (which are of course the driving force behind its nonstop ad blitz) back to deep-pocketed corporate donors under the lax electoral financing rules they've refused to change.

- The Canadian Press reports on Scott Moe's remarkable opposition to Joe Biden (and apparent lack of any qualms about four more years of Donald Trump's fascism, corruption and human rights abuses as long as they're accompanied by slightly better conditions for pipeline construction).

- Michael Bramadat-Willcock writes about the important discussion of Indigenous suicide - including Tristen Durocher's rightly-skeptical response to the Sask Party's hostility in the face of his walk to push for action. And Jason Warick points out how the historical dehumanization and disenfranchisement of Indigenous people continues to reverberate through their view of elections today.

- CBC News reports on the efforts of student groups to hold a debate for young voters - and their disappointment in Moe's refusal to bother showing up.

- Finally, Ben Alexander discusses the frustration and resignation of students returning to schools which haven't been adequately prepared for a pandemic. And while his age cohort may fall just short of being able to vote for change, there's ample reason to react with determination rather than resignation.

Tuesday Evening Links

This and that for your Tuesday evening.

- Crawford Kilian examines the UN's advice on how to keep school safe from COVID-19, while the Saskatchewan Medical Association and Saskatchewan College of Family Physicians (PDF) both urge the Saskatchewan Party start paying attention to what's needed to keep people safe. And The New York Times' editorial board points out that even the U.S. could get control of the coronavirus by this fall if there was any competence or caring to be found among its decision-makers.

- The Star's editorial board writes that COVID-19 has highlighted the need for an income support system which goes far beyond EI as it stands.

- The Canadian Press reports on the death of Canadian James Hill as a result of the uncontrolled spread of COVID while in ICE custody. And lest anybody think Canada's immigration system is wanting for cruelty, Doug Schmidt reports on the threat of kidnapping and deportation used to prevent a migrant farm worker in Ontario from reporting employer abuse.

- Joseph Stiglitz offers a reminder as to why GDP fails to measure the well-being and sustainability which should be the focus of our public policy choices.

- Finally, PressProgress points out the Saskatchewan Party's outright bragging about relying on massive corporate donations to drown out other voices. And Geoff Leo catches them promising that donations will be personally reviewed to allow donors to get into Scott Moe's good graces.

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Amanda Follett Hosgood reports on the environmental damage being done to Wet’suwet’en territory as (pointless) pipeline construction is again being given precedence over environmental protection. And Reuters reports that Zurich has become the latest insurer to decide it doesn't see TransMountain as an acceptable risk, leaving the public holding the bag even as the Libs continue to push forward.

- Leah Stokes reports on the $61 million bribery scandal - including both the Speaker of the House and corporate executives - that resulted in Ohio providing massive handouts to nuclear and fossil fuel power operators while shutting down any transition to clean energy.

- Megha Rajagopalan writes about the cosmetic industry's attempts both to push skin lightening as a necessary cosmetic step, and to bully into submission anybody who questioned it.

- Andrea Germanos writes about the Federal Court of Canada's decision striking down the Safe Third Country agreement between Canada and the U.S. on the basis that the latter doesn't actually provide effective protection for refugees.

- Finally, PressProgress discusses the Saskatchewan Party's reliance on corporate donations from Alberta and elsewhere - and the result that Saskatchewan's citizens have been ignored in favour of oil tycoons.

On foreign interference

Of course, while Scott Moe is accepting the plans of pseudo-separatists to hand Saskatchewan over to Jason Kenney, it's also worth asking what he's getting in return for his subservience.

On that front, the Breakdown has reported that public funds funnelled by Kenney into Alberta's War Room have been used to push citizens to hand over their personal data to both partisan and ideological cronies. And Jason Markusoff (citing Taylor Vaisey) has pointed out that the UCP has also been caught violating federal election law by failing to register as a third-party advertiser.

Unfortunately, due to the Saskatchewan Party's choice to keep its coffers full from outside corporate contributions, it's not clear to what extent UCP meddling would actually be a violation of Saskatchewan law. And the War Room's secrecy in particular makes it a certainty that inteference in the election campaign will be impossible to trace until after the fact.

But having chosen to facilitate outside interference, Moe can't expect the benefit of the doubt when it gives rise to questions. And Saskatchewan voters confronted with a blizzard of advertising - from both partisan and pressure-group sources - should be wary of where the money and direction is coming from.

On national interests

PressProgress highlights how Scott Moe and the Saskatchewan Party are continuing to rely heavily on corporate donations from outside the province. But it's worth noting how people across Canada who are worried about Moe and his extraprovincial puppetmasters have the opportunity to fight back.

As I've written before, Saskatchewan has extremely lax political donation laws. And Moe (like Brad Wall before him) has chosen to keep them in place based on the perceived advantage of being able to exploit corporate donations from outside businesses seeking to buy their way into the province.

But those rules also leave the door open for grassroots donors from outside the province to have an impact. So in addition to working on organizing in their own communities, Canadians are also able to contribute to change for the better in Saskatchewan in an election scheduled for October.

And that change can't come a moment too soon.

After all, the Saskatchewan Party's corporatism has had ramifications stretching far beyond our provincial borders. When every other Canadian jurisdiction was able to reach agreement on climate change policy, it was Moe who served as a roadblock to consensus on behalf of oil barons. And that was in keeping with the Saskatchewan Party's role in blocking then delaying any CPP expansion.

One might have thought that Jason Kenney's taking power in Alberta would have allowed Moe to moderate Saskatchewan's position. Instead, Moe has chosen to echo and amplify Kenney's most destructive messages even when they have absolutely no movement behind them in his own province - including by musing about snatching pensions and imposing a provincially-run police force. (That latter threat is particularly jarring as Moe's own highway patrol has been exposed stockpiling prohibited weapons and lining the pockets of bigots.)

The October election is fast approaching, and the province is braced for another Saskatchewan Party ad blitz over the summer. Which means that now is the time to ensure that Ryan Meili's NDP is able to hold its own in presenting its plans for a people-centred COVID-19 recovery, and defining Moe as he answers to the province's voters for the first time. And if enough people pitch in, what might seem like a small amount of money by the standards of larger provinces could make a huge difference in charting a healthier path for Canada as a whole.