Avi Lewis’ victory in the federal NDP leadership race drew swift rebuke from Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck, but contribution data suggests party supporters in the province have a different opinion of Lewis.

In an open letter to Lewis, Beck criticized Lewis’ opposition to new fossil fuel developments, writing that the policy positions he advocated during his campaign “are antithetical to the values of a party built with and for working people.” Beck also declined an invitation to meet with Lewis unless he reversed his stance on oil and gas development.

While the Saskatchewan New Democrat leader is trying to distance her party from her new federal counterpart, more people from Saskatchewan stepped up to contribute to Lewis’ campaign than any other candidate, according to data from Elections Canada. In fact, Lewis’ fundraising in the province topped that of all other nominees combined.

About 850 people from Saskatchewan donated more than $99,000 to candidates during the NDP leadership race, 407 of whom contributed roughly $47,300 to Lewis.

NDP MP Heather McPherson fundraised the second highest amount from Saskatchewan residents with nearly $22,000 from 171 donors.

This fundraising pattern, with Lewis in the lead and McPherson a distant second, was the same in most regions. Data from interim fundraising returns released by Elections Canada showed Lewis raised $1.23 million from 10,410 contributors across Canada, followed by McPherson who received 3,807 contributions totalling $560,143.

Speaking with reporters on March 30, Lewis said the disagreements with provincial wings of the party were a “a sign of health” that meant the party was growing.

He also said that while he’s still open to working with provincial leaders, his energy policies were part of a platform that brought in thousands of new party members and helped him win the “largest mandate for any NDP leadership race in history.”

“We have a mandate from the members, and I have a responsibility to be consistent with the ideas that brought those folks into the party to support our campaign, and I’ll continue to do that,” Lewis said.

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