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At the New Democratic Party (NDP) leadership convention in Toronto last weekend, members of the NDP elected their new party leader, McGill alumnus and current Outrement MP Thomas Mulcair. On Monday, March 26, the Tribune sat down with Richard Schultz, Chair of the McGill department of political science and expert in Canadian politics, to discuss the challenges facing Mulcair and the NDP.

What about Thomas Mulcair makes him a good leader for the NDP? What will he need to work on?

I think what will help him is his reputation, but what will hurt him is also his reputation. He’s a real fighter, determined and strong. That is going to be absolutely necessary to confront Steven Harper, because [Harper’s] government is the most vicious I’ve witnessed when it comes to dealing with their opponents.

The negative side of [Mulcair’s reputation] is that he’s said to have a temper, and if that is the case he will probably have to gain some control over it, especially [when] dealing with his fellow NDP members. He maintained a very good, placid approach all through the campaign, despite some of the nasty comments that were made about him. So that’s a sign that he understands the dangers of [his temper] and knows how to keep it under control, so I think the Conservatives should be nervous. He’s going to be very effective as leader of the opposition.

 The NDP is said to have gained much of its support in the last election because of Jack Layton. What challenges will Mulcair face as Jack Layton’s successor?

The major thing that he has to do is to maintain as many of the NDP’s seats in Quebec as possible. I think [so many people in Quebec voted NDP] because the Liberals and Conservatives were so unacceptable to the Quebec electorate, and people were fed up with the Bloc. I think Jack Layton’s image helped a bit, but people were just looking for an alternative to all three of the other parties. That will only happen once. It’s going to be very difficult in many of these ridings to maintain that support.

[The NDP] didn’t gain as many seats in the rest of Canada. They’ve got to prove that they’re the alternative party, not just in Quebec but in the rest of the country too. They are going to have to fight very hard to maintain their role as the official opposition.

What about the claims that Mulcair will move the NDP closer to the political centre?

I do that think they’re going to have to move closer to the centre in some respects, but I don’t think it’s a big step. [They’ve] got to do more than talk about taxing the rich. While one could argue that the rich should be taxed appropriately for fairness’ sake, it’s not going to solve the problems of budget deficits. One of the big issues that they’re going to face is how to deal with union matters, because the unions are a strong component and strong supporters of the NDP. There’s popular support amongst the people against public servants striking, so the NDP under Mulcair will have to find a fine balance in terms of protecting wider public interests and not just the union interests. It’s not impossible, but it’s going to be demanding.

Do you think the NDP will face stronger competition from the Liberal Party now that Jack Layton is gone?

Yes, but that’s also going to depend on their leadership. I think Bob Rae has performed very well [as interim Liberal leader]. If he doesn’t become the Liberal leader, I think that the NDP has a better chance of maintaining their position as the number two party. Otherwise it’s going to depend on how the NDP tackles some of the current issues. I don’t see anyone other than the Conservatives winning the next election, but I think it’s going to be difficult for them to maintain a majority. [Harper] only has 39 per cent of the vote, [so] 60 per cent of the people don’t like the conservative government. Maybe the Liberals and the NDP will have some sort of informal arrangement, where the Liberals let the NDP be the only opposition candidate in one riding and the NDP won’t run a candidate when there’s a strong Liberal candidate in another. They could focus the anti-[Conservative] vote on one of the two parties. But I think [the Conservatives] are working their way towards another minority government. Whether it will be the Liberals or the NDP who will be the opposition, I don’t know.

-This interview has been edited and condensed.