Avi Lewis launched his campaign for the NDP leadership Friday without addressing his past claims that Israel was guilty of “genocide” and that Canadians should make it a “ballot question” in 2024.“For four decades I’ve stood with workers and told stories of working-class heroes, organizing for dignity in factories and fields, classrooms and care homes, shop floors and fishing fleets,” Lewis said in a video statement. “Now I want to stand with you.”Blacklock's Reporter said the campaign made no mention of multiple Twitter posts Lewis wrote last year, including one that read: “My prayer: May Israel’s genocide be a ballot question in 2024.” He also accused Canada’s government of “complicity” and described Israel’s actions in Gaza and Lebanon as “one of humanity’s worst crimes.”Lewis, who ran unsuccessfully in Vancouver Centre during the last election, was endorsed by the advocacy group Vote Palestine, which accused Jews of genocide. .He finished a distant third, losing by more than 23,000 votes to longtime Liberal MP Hedy Fry.The NDP was the only major party in 2025 to openly campaign on a platform accusing Israel of genocide. Former leader Jagmeet Singh declared during the leaders’ debate, “This is genocide.”Lewis comes from a prominent political family. His grandfather David Lewis, who led the NDP in the 1970s, supported Israel’s right to exist and defended its military during Commons debates on the Six-Day War.Controversy over anti-Israel rhetoric is not limited to Lewis. Another NDP candidate, Ehab Mustapha of Mississauga-Erin Mills, claimed in social media posts that Jews controlled the government and accused the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs of secretly shaping Canadian policy. Mustapha also promoted his membership in Palestine House, a group that retweeted posts calling Israelis “murderous, demon-possessed psychopaths.”Neither Lewis nor his campaign responded to questions about his past remarks.
