[LINK] "NDP aims to translate federal breakthrough into provincial wins"

[rfmcdonald]

If the NDP are successful in this, as the Globe and Mail's Ian Bailey notes, this could cement the NDP's position as the second party.

Federal NDP insiders, giddy over their new 103-member caucus, think they have a winning strategy to share – and many provincial and territorial New Democrats facing elections this year agree.

For that reason, the party’s weekend biennial convention in Vancouver is not just a celebration of the party’s 50th anniversary, but also a classroom for some New Democrats from across Canada.

“Everybody is here to learn a bit and to adjust to fit their own province,” Moe Sihota, president of the B.C. New Democratic Party, said Saturday during a break in the proceedings.

At least seven elections are expected this year in such provinces as Ontario, Newfoundland and British Columbia, where federal New Democrats picked up an extra three seats in the province in the federal vote.

[. . .]

Successful provincial and territorial NDP parties are in the interest of the federal party, says Brad Lavigne, the party’s national director.

It’s also a more immediate issue for the party, which is four years away from a federal election that will test the party’s drive to become Canada’s next government.

In an election workshop for delegates, Mr. Lavigne ran over increases in the popular vote for federal New Democrats on a province-by-province basis.

“We have got to harness this, and make sure we translate the support we got on May 2 in the federal election into support for our provincial elections,” he said in an interview.

“One of the best ways we can cement the support that we gained is by ensuring that we get it for the provincial elections coming up.”

While he said there are distinctions between federal and provincial campaigning, there are common areas where ideas can be shared, he said.

That said, he conceded that not every NDP provincial party is in within sight of government, and the calculation varies across Canada.

“We measure the success based on where we start,” he said.