NDP candidate who once championed sovereignty drops out of race

MONTREAL – Beatrice Zako, the NDP‘s candidate in the Montreal riding of Papineau, has dropped out of the race in this fall’s federal elections.

The NDP had previously said it was comfortable with Zako’s sovereigntist past as part of Option nationale, a pro-independence provincial party in Quebec.

Zako said some of the comments she made two years ago were not compatible with the vision of the NDP.

All the same, Zako insisted her flirtation with independence lasted only three months – the duration of her time as a member of the party’s national council.

In a document submitted to the party’s 2013 convention, Zako wrote that it was time to choose a political path and she had opted for Quebec independence.

She was also quoted as saying she was looking forward to replacing her Canadian passport with a Quebec one.

Zako resigned shortly after party founder Jean-Martin Aussant stepped down in 2013.

It is unclear if Zako will run as an independent candidate in the upcoming federal elections.

Papineau has been held by Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau since 2008.

*with files from The Canadian Press.