This article was published 9/9/2017 (1107 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Had U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and British Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn won the lofty offices to which they aspired, Steve Ashton reckons we’d have a pretty good notion where he’d be taking the Manitoba NDP.

The former cabinet minister says the 2015 federal election "destroyed the myth" young people don’t care, yet six months later, when the province went to the polls and elected Brian Pallister’s Progressive Conservatives, tens of thousands of them didn’t vote.

So, how to reach young Manitoba voters? The template is there, he says, and he is the person to achieve it.

"You start with the lesson from Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn," Ashton says, listing off progressive policies, such as a $15-an-hour minimum wage and reduced tuition moving to eliminating tuition. "Inequality and the environment are very progressive (issues) — they do worry about climate change."

Sanders, who lost the Democratic nomination to Hillary Clinton despite a strong backing from younger supporters, and Corbyn, whose party narrowly lost in Britain’s general election last June, are both older men. Ashton, likewise, reckons he’s the candidate to appeal to young voters, much like they did, notwithstanding that Wab Kinew is 26 years his junior.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Steve Ashton, former cabinet minister.

"I was 25 when I was first elected, my daughter Niki was 26 (when she became an MP). I believe in a grassroots party — the next few years there’s going to be a significant renewal," Ashton says during an interview at an Osborne Village coffee shop.

Oswald to delegates: 'Choose someone who can actually win' Click to Expand MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Theresa Oswald speaks after losing her bid to be the leader of the provincial NDP on Sunday at the NDP Convention in 2015. Theresa Oswald is a former NDP cabinet minister, leadership candidate, and one of the rebels who tried unsuccessfully to convince Greg Selinger it would be in the party’s best interests if he stepped down. She won’t discuss current leadership candidates Wab Kinew and Steve Ashton, but here’s Oswald’s advice for New Democrats when they vote Sept. 16: “I can say, generally, that I have deep respect for the personal toll it takes on anyone who throws a hat into the leadership ring. I mean this. I have these feelings for the NDP leadership candidates, and the Liberal leadership hopefuls as well (Manitoba Liberals are also in the process of selecting a new leader). I think the armchair quarterbacks and the comment-section-trolls have little understanding of what it means to put oneself out there for public scrutiny. Every rotten and vicious thing that is said gets read by one’s partner, one’s parents, and sometimes, one’s children. It’s a heavy burden to carry. Every candidate, in his or her own way, really believes they can make a positive difference, so they invest time, energy (and money…lots of money) in trying to sell the ideas and the policies from which others can draw inspiration. Nobody signs up for public vilification, but it happens nonetheless. “To every delegate at the NDP convention, I would say what I have said in the past: you need to choose someone who can actually win. It’s one thing to serve as a left-wing think tank in perpetuity, but it’s entirely another to actually have the responsibility of governing. When you govern, you get to enact the policies that make a difference for people. You can affect change. It’s a huge responsibility. It’s a sacred trust. So, in addition to choosing someone who can win, delegates need to choose someone who is worthy of winning… not someone who is perfect, but someone who has a heart and a mind that is capable of weighing difficult decisions, and choosing thoughtfully.”

He says he would encourage the party to move to early nominations, such as 18 to 24 months before the next provincial election, which means ridings could choose their candidates as early as next spring. He says he wouldn’t appoint or parachute in candidates.

An MLA in Thompson from 1981 until his defeat in April 2016, Ashton says he’s an economist, not a career politician, having taught some courses over the years, and he’s also a man of the deep, having worked underground for the mining company Inco in his younger days.

"I was elected off the picket line," points out Ashton, who is a big-tent leader, encompassing not only youth, but women, minorities, labour, Indigenous people, and the LGBTQ* community.

Ashton launched his campaign in front of Concordia Hospital, vowing to reverse the closing of ERs and urgent care centres, but has made few sweeping policy statements since. He said he would make it illegal to utter racial and homophobic slurs and he’s demanded Kinew reveal details of domestic assault charges against him stayed in 2003.

Veteran political observers believe that with Ashton, what Manitobans will get will be more of what they’ve seen for decades and with a leader whose buttons are easier to push.

"Steve is a career politician. His entire life has been as a political actor," says Chris Adams, a political scientist based at St. Paul’s College. "He would lead a party that’s part of the past 25 years of the NDP — nothing too surprising. We would see a traditional NDP, pro-organized labour, steady as we go, not unlike Greg Selinger, Gary Doer, Howard Pawley."

Ashton is "far more experienced, obviously," says retired University of Manitoba political scientist Paul Thomas. "He’s an opinionated person. At times, he flies off the handle. People across the aisle liked to bait him and get him to explode.

"His whole life is about politics. Steve still sees himself as part of a social movement," Thomas says. "Gary Doer was very much a pragmatist — Ashton opposed some of those (Doer policies) — he was still a true believer. He’s a man on a mission."

Says University of Winnipeg Prof. Shannon Sampert, editor and director of the Evidence Network: "Steve Ashton is pretty much steady as you go — he’s not presenting much difference. You’d see more alliances with what the federal NDP are doing."

Longtime NDP cabinet minister Gord Mackintosh, who served many years with Ashton, says his decision to focus public attention on domestic violence charges against Kinew that were stayed 14 years ago don’t sit well with some New Democrats.

"I have no big problems with Steve. It remains to be seen whether Steve’s hit on Wab strengthens support for Wab — some in the party were offended by that," Mackintosh says. "Steve’s campaign is very highly organized on the ground."

The NDP must realize that the real opponent is not within the NDP, Mackintosh adds. "We have to leave the rebellion behind — there’s so much we have to take on together. We have to build a stronger party from the scars."

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Wab Kinew, Fort Rouge MLA.

Wab Kinew was courted by the federal and provincial Liberals as well as both wings of the New Democratic Party before choosing to run under the NDP banner in Fort Rouge last year.

The author, former broadcaster, musician and university administrator was seen as a catch, despite several run-ins with the law when he was a young adult that resulted in convictions for assault and drunk driving.

Kinew, a father of two boys aged nine and 12, grew up on a First Nation in Lake of the Woods as well as in St. Boniface and Southdale. At 35, he would become the provincial NDP’s first leader from the millennial generation, something he sees as an asset for the party.

"I have the life experience of a lot of millennials. And, while I’m getting older, I still have some of the vocabulary and interests of a lot of young people. That piece is important," he said in an interview this week at a coffee shop in Osborne Village.

"The other thing I bring to the table is that I have a very unique life experience relative to other politicians, for better or worse. I started life on a reserve. I come from a family where we had to work really hard and we had to do a lot in order to find success. And I think that’s given me an understanding of some of the barriers that people from different communities can face. I’ve also lived a life where I’ve been in trouble with the law, where I’ve had to re-examine my character, and rebuilt myself in a lot of ways to become a more healthy individual."

In their words Click to Expand “I think he’s got to own up to what happened. I thought it was absolutely unacceptable that he made statements that don’t reflect what happened.” — Steve Ashton, on Aug. 21, reacting to revelations that domestic assault charges against Wab Kinew were stayed in 2003 “It’s a growing threat to our social fabric in this country. We have to stand up against fascism and Nazism.” — Ashton, on Aug. 15, announcing he would make it illegal to utter racial and homophobic slurs in public “There is rebuilding that needs to be done, and lessons that need to be learned. We’re going to put the democracy into the New Democratic Party. We need to be the progressive alternative. We can’t be running on what we did five, 10, 15 years ago.” — Ashton, on June 27, the day he announced his candidacy for the party’s leadership ---- “Manitobans sent (the NDP) a message. They put us on a timeout. The timeout is over. I will hold Brian Pallister accountable.” — Wab Kinew announces his leadership candidacy on April 10 “We know that a big part of what we want to do with immigration is not just bring people to Manitoba, but retain people in Manitoba for the long term.” — Kinew, on Aug. 14, in announcing he would scrap a $500 fee levied on successful immigrant applicants “I have a unique perspective on what we can do to change our society for the better because I’m somebody who made good on a second chance. And so I have hope that other people in our society who are struggling can have a better tomorrow, too.” — Kinew in a Sept. 5 interview with the Free Press

While once pursued by the Liberals, Kinew says his values align with those of the NDP.

Asked whether he would steer the party to the political left or more to the centre, Kinew resists such characterizations.

Like most millennials, he says, he is "relatively centrist" on financial issues, such as balancing the province’s books, and "very left leaning" on social issues such as equality for the LGBTTQ* community, Indigenous rights and so on.

There are those within the NDP who feel the party didn’t lose the last election because of their platform, but Kinew has a rejoinder to that: "The platform didn’t win us the election, either," he says.

He says some of the party’s ideas — particularly as they relate to jobs and health care — need to be modernized.

"We need a jobs plan for the next 30 years," he says, one that takes into account huge looming technological changes that are going to put a lot of people out of work.

On health, he agrees with the Progressive Conservatives that long-term sustainability is a challenge, but he thinks the Brian Pallister government is going about it in the wrong way. "To me, we’re not going to cut our way out of the sustainability challenges the way Pallister is doing. To me, we have to shift the focus of the health-care system into keeping people healthy at home."

During the leadership campaign, Kinew has promised a $15-minimum wage by the end of a first NDP term in office. He would invest every dollar collected from a carbon tax to reducing and mitigating the effects of global warming. A government he leads would provide free tuition and books to qualifying students who have aged out of the child-welfare system. He also backed calls for universal pharmacare coverage, pledged stronger mental health supports, and urged increased support for recreation and active living facilities. He also set a goal that at least half of the next NDP caucus would be made up of "women, transgender and non-binary people."

Kinew appears to have the lead in delegate support going into next week’s convention despite recent revelations that he was charged with two counts of domestic assault back in 2003. The charges were stayed, and Kinew says there was no substance to the allegations.

Organized labour has come out overwhelmingly in support for the former CBC broadcaster, and Kinew says he has also been pleased with the party support he has received in rural areas.

A veteran political observer says Kinew, as someone relatively new to the NDP, doesn’t carry the same political baggage as some longtime party members.

"Wab brings in the traditional NDP but also different dynamics," St. Paul’s College-based political scientist Chris Adams says. "He’s got the freedom he can go a different route."

Adams says Kinew will appeal to a growing Indigenous population in Manitoba. "Wab is tapping into that... an Indigenous urban MLA who can transcend across the North."

Paul Thomas, professor emeritus of political studies at the University of Manitoba, says Kinew would present an interesting leadership style.

"He’s a very passionate and effective communicator," Thomas says.

Thomas likens Kinew’s political style to that of Gary Doer. "He (Doer) didn’t come across as highly ideological; he didn’t alienate people."