Mulcair elected as NDP leader

Quebec MP Thomas Mulcair is the leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, after receiving 57.2 per cent of the final ballot vote March 24.

His only remaining opponent, longtime party strategist and organizer Brian Topp, received 42.8 per cent of the vote.

Following a 12-hour long day of voting, Mulcair delivered an underwhelming speech, choosing to focus on engaging Canadians who no longer vote, potential cooperation with the Liberals and reversing the Conservative government's decisions to reduce the size of the state.

"From public healthcare to public pensions, these values are reflected in the institutions we have built, institutions we risk losing under the policies of the current government," Mulcair told convention goers.

Mulcair succeeds the late Jack Layton, who succumbed to cancer only three months after leading the left-of-centre party to its greatest ever success in the May 2011 federal election.

About 58,000 NDP members voted in the fourth and final round of the leadership race.

His election as leader signals a move away from the party's tradition of social democracy, as Mulcair indicated his desire to move the party towards the centre of the political spectrum many times during the campaign.