Canada elections: Pro-Khalistan leader Jagmeet Singh breaks down on camera after losing seat
At his campaign headquarters in Burnaby, Jagmeet Singh addressed his supporters, thanked his family, and congratulated Liberal leader Mark Carney on his win.
Jagmeet Singh, the Indo-Canadian leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), who has been a vocal supporter of the Khalistan movement, was seen breaking down on camera after losing his seat from Burnaby Central in British Columbia during the Canada elections on Monday. He announced he would step down as party leader once an interim leader is appointed.
The defeat marked a dramatic fall for Jagmeet Singh, who had won a decisive victory in 2017 to become NDP leader.
On Tuesday night, at his campaign headquarters in Burnaby, Jagmeet Singh addressed his supporters, thanked his family, and congratulated Liberal leader Mark Carney on his win.
During his emotional concession speech, Jagmeet Singh fought back tears as he spoke about his love for the NDP and hope for the future. In a video shared by Western Standard journalist @JarrydJaeger, Singh said, “Thank you and all of you in this room, you guys poured your heart into this. Thank you so much for everything you've done. You're amazing.”
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"I know this night is a disappointing night for New Democrats. We had really good candidates who lost tonight. I know how hard you worked. I spent time with you. You're amazing. I'm so sorry you won't be able to represent your communities. I know you'll continue to fight for them," he added.
Jagmeet Singh conceded his seat in Burnaby Central, which he had held since 2019, coming in third. The seat, formerly called Burnaby South, was affected by redistribution ahead of this election.
Singh confirmed he would resign once an interim leader is selected, marking the end of his leadership, which began in October 2017 after he won the leadership race on the first ballot.
What led to NDP's crushing defeat?
The New Democratic Party (NDP) suffered a crushing setback in Canada’s federal election, with many attributing the poor performance to leader Jagmeet Singh’s earlier alliance with former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s minority government. As reported in a Hindustan Times report earlier, Singh had entered into a supply and confidence agreement with Trudeau in March 2022—a decision that many believe tarnished his image, especially after Trudeau stepped down in January.
Despite the leadership change, Singh struggled to shake off the perception that he helped keep an unpopular government afloat.
Singh, who first entered the House of Commons in a February 2019 by-election from Burnaby South with 39% of the vote, had managed to retain his seat in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
But this time, his party was on track to win just seven seats—an 18-seat drop from 2021—raising the prospect that the NDP could lose its official party status in the House of Commons. Nationally, the party’s vote share dropped by 12 percentage points to just six percent.
Standing beside his wife, Gurkiran, on election night, Singh remained defiant. He told supporters the NDP was “not going anywhere.”
He also invoked a core Sikh belief, saying: “In the fight for justice, the fight for fairness, we want to have defiant optimism in the face of struggle.” Singh called this idea of chardi kala “fundamental” to him.
Singh began his political career in 2011 when he was elected to the Ontario provincial parliament. He eventually used that platform to launch himself onto the national political stage.
