By Charlie Senack
Ottawa Centre MPP Joel Harden is eyeing the federal NDP position in his riding.
Sources told the Kitchissippi Times that Harden has recently filed paperwork to be a federal NDP candidate for the area in the next election. When reached by phone Thursday afternoon, the local politician confirmed that papers have been submitted, but wouldn’t comment further as he has not yet been authorized as a nomination contestant, meaning no campaigning can take place.
“It’s true I’ve submitted papers but I can’t say anymore about the nomination process,” said Harden, who went on to talk about how much he enjoys serving Ottawa Centre residents provincially at Queen’s Park.
“I’m very proud to be part of the Ontario NDP Party. It’s the dream job of my life,” added Harden. “I love working for the community and I believe that Ontarians deserve nice things.”
It’s unclear when the next federal election will occur, but a recent Nanos Survey suggested that nearly one in two Canadians would prefer it take place this year over next. It will need to occur on or before Oct. 25, 2025.
An Abacus Data survey found that Conservatives are leading by 17 points over the current Liberal government. If an election was held today, the survey found that 41 per cent of committed voters would go Conservative with 24 per cent stating they would vote Liberal. The NDP are in third place at 19 per cent.
At the federal level in Ottawa Centre, Yasir Naqvi is the representative for the riding. The Liberal MP handedly won his seat in 2021 with 45.5 per cent of the vote. Prior to that he was MPP in the area until his defeat by Harden in 2018.
Since being elected to Queen’s Park, Harden has been a vocal critic of the Doug Ford-led provincial government. He served as the Opposition Critic for Accessibility and Persons with Disabilities Pensions until 2022, and more recently as the Opposition Critic for Transit and Active Transportation.