OTTAWA - Jagmeet Singh celebrated his byelection win the same way he rang in winning the NDP leadership race: on a dance floor.
"We danced the night away," Singh said Tuesday morning in an interview as his party breathed a collective sigh of relief following a win in the federal riding of Burnaby South.
For the leader, the win finally gives him a seat in the House of Commons - something he hasn't been able to access since taking over the reins of the NDP from Tom Mulcair in October 2017.
Singh is calling on his party to make the most of the months leading up to the October election.
He knows full well he has a limited amount of time to shine in the Commons across from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer before Parliament rises in June.
"I want us to focus in on the next eight months and what we can do to make people's lives better," Singh said.
"It allows me to ramp up the pressure on Mr. Trudeau, on the Liberal government and allows me to really put into focus the question 'Is this Liberal government more interested in helping their well-connected, powerful friends like SNC-Lavalin?"'
On Tuesday morning, cabinet ministers expressed delight over securing a win in Mulcair's former Quebec riding.
Finance Minister Bill Morneau, Tourism Minister Melanie Joly and Infrastructure Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne all suggested the result is indicative of troubles for the NDP in the province, going as far as to say the so-called orange wave is dead.
"It's finished," Champagne said. "Just look at the results."
The byelection in Outremont was sparked by Mulcair's departure as an MP - a seat he held since 2007.
Mulcair's victory helped the party build support in the province that resulted in the NDP clenching official Opposition status for the first time in its history during the 2011 election.
Singh said it was not a surprise that Outremont was going to be a challenging fight, but he refuted the idea the orange wave has crested.
"The base that we built in Quebec is alive and well," he said, adding he's planning a visit to the province next week. "We've got lots of great support to build on, we've got great MPs that are there."
For his part, Trudeau took to Twitter this morning to welcome the newest member of his team, Rachel Bendayan.
The United Steelworkers said in a statement that Singh's win in Burnaby South is a sign of momentum for the party looking to turn around its political prospects before the election.
"The NDP leader has earned his seat in the House of Commons, and Canadians are eager to have him there," said national director Ken Neumann.
The Conservatives also hung on to a seat in the Ontario riding of York-Simcoe. Scot Davidson will take over for Peter Van Loan, who held the seat since 2004 before announcing his retirement earlier this year.
