Disability activist Sarah Jama to be acclaimed as Ontario NDP candidate for Hamilton Centre

It turns out there's only one person who wants to replace Andrea Horwath as the Ontario NDPcandidate for Hamilton Centre.

Prominent Hamilton activist Sarah Jama tweeted Sunday morning she will be acclaimed as the NDP candidaterunning formember of provincial parliamentin the riding.

She said there will bea nomination meeting and dance party on Nov. 3 at 6 p.m., at theWorker's Arts and Heritage Museum on Stuart Street.

The NDPconfirmed to CBC HamiltonJama is the only approved candidate. That means she'll be acclaimed on Nov. 3.

Jamaannounced her intention to seek the nomination in late July, not long after Horwath stepped down as MPP. The former party leader later announced she'd run for Hamilton mayor.

"There are people who have been involved for decades and decades in the NDPwho have maintained the status quo and I think what I bring to that is a peaceful disruption," Jamaa 28-year-old Black, disabledcaregiverand renter in downtown Hamilton who grew up using theOntario Disability Support Program (ODSP) previously told CBC Hamilton.

Jamahad a hand in political campaigns for Horwath, Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green and Ward 3incumbent Nrinder Nann. She said she's also served on the NDP'sfederal council and executive.

Jama is theco-founder of thethe Disability Justice Network of Ontario, a founding boardmember of theHamilton Transit Riders' Union andhas worked with numerous organizations like the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion, the Hamilton Community Benefits Network and Hamilton CareMongering, a COVID-19 community support initiative.

She's alsowell known for heractivism, which has prompted criticism from some in the community, includingcurrent Mayor Fred Eisenbergerand police.

Those efforts includedstaying atan encampment in front of city hall for weeks,placinga coffinin front ofEisenberger'shome later andspray painting "Defund The Police" on Main Street all of which occurred in 2020 among other actions. Charges againsther and five other activistsrelated to encampment protests in 2021 were dropped earlier this year.

She has alsospoken outwidely againstthe expansionof Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) law and the impact ondisabled and racialized people as a result.

When asked about what she says to people who think she's too radical, Jama pointed to her experience with campaigns and community groups.

"The parts of my activism that make people uncomfortable were meant to do so because ...when you don't have power and all you have arethe people around you to push for change, sometimes that means focusing on shifting the narrative," she said.

"What I'm doing is now is attempting to do now is seek power ... so I can actually have a seat at the table."

Other party candidates ready to run in byelection

Jama said she'll fill what she sees as a gap in leadership by being on the ground. She'll continue to that kind of work, she said, such as visiting community kitchens and speakingto people at safe injection sites, among other things.

Jama said Horwath has helped steer the NDP party, butbeing party leader can take away from being visiblein Hamilton.

Jama said she would also like to redistribute money from the elected offices in Hamilton Centre to community efforts. She wouldalso fight to raise ODSP funding and social assistanceto a living wage, as well as making rent more affordable, she said, working toward a guaranteed basic income and improvingthe state of hospitals' emergency departments.

After Horwath officially resigned, Premier Doug Ford getssix months to call a byelection, as laid out in the Legislative Assembly Act.Parties do not need to wait for a writ in order to nominate a candidate to run, however.

In the recent provincial election,runningagainst HorwathinHamilton Centre were Progressive ConservativeSarah Bokhari, Liberal Ekaterini Dimakis and for the Greens, Sandy Crawley.

Dimakistold CBC Hamilton on Sundayshe intends to run again when there's a byelection.

"As for Sarah's acclamation, I wish to congratulate her," she said.

"The election could be called at any time and we're absolutely ready," Jamawrote on Twitter.