Ottawa MP Yasir Naqvi 'seriously considering' run for Ontario Liberal leadership

Liberal Ottawa MP Yasir Naqvi says he is "seriously considering" a run to lead the Ontario Liberal Party.

Speaking on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning, Naqvi said the current Ontario government under Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford and the state of the province are his reasons for interest in the job.

"I'm really concerned about the state of affairs of our public health system and our public education system," he said.

"We are seeing complete chaos in the system."

The leadership of the provincial Liberals has been a question since the last election.

The Liberals won just eight seats in the June 2 election — one more seat than they did in 2018, but with fewer votes overall. It means the party followed up the worst election result in its history with its second-worst result.

Former leader Steven Del Duca resigned on election night after failing to win his own seat.

Naqvi said people around him have been encouraging him to make a run to help "rebuild" the party in Ontario.

"Let's not sugar-coat it. That's not easy work. As you know my provincial party has had two very difficult elections," he said.

"This is about making sure that Ontario remains a leader in Canada and there's a great opportunity to do so."

No timeline for permanently replacing Del Duca has been announced. Another Ottawa politician — MPP John Fraser — is the interim leader.

Naqvi was elected to the House of Commons in the 2021 federal election.