The Hamilton municipal election is coming up this October and NDP leader Andrea Horwath says that she hasn’t ruled out the possibility of running for mayor. Considering she previously ruled out the possibility of stepping down as leader of the NDP, she could be planning to do both jobs simultaneously, especially given the NDP’s (and PC’s) utter irrelevance in the wake of Kathleen Wynne’s “landslide 38% mandate government.”

Rumours began swirling on June 24 when TVO’s Steve Paikin tweeted that Horwath was resigning from her post to potentially run for mayor of the Hammer. Horwath and her NDP reps denied the claim, but Andrea left her legions of Steeltown Beliebers with a glimmer of hope: “Never say never!“

As of late, Horwath has been in denial about her party’s recent defeat. She was the catalyst for the last election after rejecting Kathleen Wynne’s Liberal budget, despite the fact that it leaned a few steps left of Marx. The NDP did not increase in seats in the election, and instead, the Liberals gained enough to form a majority government, rendering Horwath and her party powerless to the whims of Wynne (coincidentally the name Kathleen should use if she ever records a metal album). Since then, fingers have been perpetually pointed at Horwath, with one-third of Ontarians calling for her resignation.

Like any good motivational counsellor will tell you, sometimes change is exactly what you need to get out of a rut. So, municipal Hamilton politics could be exactly what Andrea Horwath needs. Between rejecting Wynne’s lefty budget and preaching responsibility for taxpayer money, the only thing ‘NDP’ about Horwath is the bumper sticker on her car (we made that up; we have no idea if she has any bumper stickers on her car). Municipal politicians don’t have any responsibility to tow the party line or even have a party at all. That’s the kind of freedom a person like Andrea Horwath needs. And given the reports on poverty in the city of Hamilton, the provincial NDP isn’t the only thing that needs revitalizing.