Liberal MP Andrew Leslie withdraws re-election bid

Before being elected in 2015, Leslie was a retired lieutenant-general with the Canadian Armed Forces.

Leslie has only served in the government for one term as an MP.

” Accordingly, I will not be running in the next election and have stepped down from my duties as parliamentary secretary to afford the opportunity to another member,” wrote Leslie in his announcement letter.

Throughout his letter Leslie also praised the Liberal government’s support for fellow veterans and hoped that further work will be done in that area.

Upon being elected, Leslie was appointed by the Liberals as a chief whip and then promptly joined Chrystia Freeland’s Foreign Affairs Ministry as her parliamentary secretary.

While parliamentary secretary his appointment largely focused on US-Canada relations and more specifically a position in the high profile NAFTA negotiations.

Leslie is not the only Liberal to have announced his intent not to seek re-election. Liberal MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes and Don Rusnak were the last to announce they won’t be seeking re-election in March.