Controversial left-wing activist Yves Engler has had his NDP leadership bid rejected by the party.The NDP alleges that the Montreal-based author and pro-Palestinian advocate has harassed and intimidated elected officials.The Globe and Mail reports that Engler was told at the end of November that his application to join the race had been rejected by the NDP’s vetting committee.He has since asked for a formal review of the decision, but the party hasn’t changed its decision.In an email to Engler, the party cited concerns about his political activities and views, referencing that he echoed “Russian state propaganda with respect to the Russo-Ukrainian war and NATO.”Engler has publicly denied these claims, saying he has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and that he has “no sympathy for Vladimir Putin.”The letter also said that he had repeated the term “Holocaust industry” to denigrate Holocaust survivors and memorials.Engler responded by saying the term was not coined by him but by a Jewish scholar whose family was murdered in the Holocaust.In a letter to the NDP committee, Engler’s lawyer, Dimitri Lascaris, said that his client had publicly condemned antisemitism on multiple occasions..Yves Engler's NDP leadership bid raises questions on record of antisemitism, anti-capitalism.Lascaris also stated that “if people claim to be ‘intimidated’ by Mr. Engler despite his demonstrated commitment to non-violence," and there is an absence of evidence that he has assaulted or threatened to assault anyone, then the fault does not lie with his client.Earlier this year, the NDP’s Socialist Caucus endorsed Engler’s leadership run, stating that he is “exactly the leader Canada’s NDP needs: fearless, principled, and unapologetically socialist.”This rejected bid is just the latest in a string of controversies involving Engler.In February, he was arrested in Montreal on charges of harassment and indecent communication for calling pro-Israel influencer Dahlia Kurtz a “fascist genocide supporter" due to her posts on X. He was also charged with criminal harassment and intimidation of a Montreal police detective this year, and a judge is expected to deliver a verdict in the case in January.Engler has stated that he has raised the $100,000 to be in the leadership race and has spent tens of thousands of dollars on his campaign so far.Lucy Watson, national director of the NDP, said in an official statement that “after reviewing Mr. Engler’s full application, the Leadership Vote Committee determined he did not meet the eligibility standards that apply to every applicant. He exercised his right to request a review, and an independent review committee upheld that decision.”
