Leader of the NDP Avi Lewis does not have a seat in the House of Commons, so he is not earning the income associated with that political responsibility.Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press
More than a month after winning the federal NDP’s leadership race, Avi Lewis is working without a salary while the party tries to figure out how much to pay him.
Donya Ziaee, Mr. Lewis’s communications director, said talks are underway to resolve the matter and acknowledged the state of the party, which suffered its worst result ever in the 2025 election, is a factor that will impact the leader’s pay.
The NDP is working to “identify an appropriate salary given the financial needs of the party at this time,” Ms. Ziaee said in a statement.
Mr. Lewis, elected party leader on March 29, does not have a seat in the House of Commons, so he is not earning the income associated with that political responsibility.
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According to Ms. Ziaee, the NDP does not intend to pay Mr. Lewis a salary commensurate with a member of Parliament. MPs currently earn $217,700 per year, with top-up payments possible depending on their parliamentary assignments.
Discussions about the NDP leader’s salary involve Mr. Lewis, party president Niall Ricardo and party vice-president Libby Davies, a former MP for Vancouver East.
“These discussions are in the early stages, in part due to Mr. Lewis’s family circumstances during the early days of the leadership transition,” Ms. Ziaee, referring to the death of the leader’s father, Stephen.
“Once finalized, compensation will be applied retroactively.”
In the 2025 election, the NDP lost 17 seats and won only 6.29 per cent of the vote. Former party leader Jagmeet Singh, who was defeated in his Vancouver-area riding, resigned his post on election night.
The party ended up with seven seats but has since lost two. Nunavut MP Lori Idlout crossed the floor to join the Liberals in March and Alexandre Boulerice quit the NDP caucus in April to sit as an independent until Quebec’s provincial election, when he intends to run for a seat in the National Assembly.
With five seats, the NDP is short of the 12 required for official party status in the House of Commons, a designation that comes with additional operational funding.
Recently, however, members of other parties on the Board of Internal Economy lowered the seat threshold to receive those funds, granting the party $670,000 annually, though the seat requirement for official party status did not change.
Don Davies, the NDP’s parliamentary leader, said the money, announced in April, would be used to hire research and support staff to help the caucus carry out its duties.
Mr. Lewis has ruled out seeking a seat soon, saying he plans to leave House of Commons business to his caucus and instead focus on travelling Canada to rebuild support for the party.
Ms. Ziaee said the NDP is covering necessary travel expenses for Mr. Lewis as he travels the country.
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Previous NDP leaders Mr. Singh and Jack Layton won the leadership without seats and ruled out running in by-elections for reasons similar to those expressed by Mr. Lewis. They also received compensation from the party ahead of becoming MPs.
Anne McGrath, a veteran NDP strategist, said party members have high expectations for Mr. Lewis’s ability to boost the NDP’s fortunes and are looking for results.
“You don’t get that if the leader doesn’t have the tools necessary to do the job ‐ and that includes a decent salary,” Ms. McGrath said in an interview.
Still, she said the challenges facing the NDP are relevant: “I think everybody is conscious of the fact that [the salary] has to be carefully decided on. It’s definitely a matter for consideration, the state of the party’s finances.”