Michael Laxer

Who is Michael Laxer?

Michael Laxer is a Canadian political activist and the chairperson of the Socialist Party of Ontario.

Laxer lives in the Toronto neighbourhood of Long Branch, in Etobicoke, where he and his wife own and operate a used book store, the only independent used bookstore in south Etobicoke.

He was a candidate for the New Democratic Party in the 2000 federal election in the riding of Scarborough—Agincourt, and for the Ontario NDP during the 2003 provincial election in Scarborough Centre. Laxer was also an unsuccessful candidate for Toronto City Council in Ward 6 in the 2010 municipal election.

In 2008, he criticized the $15,000 entrance fee for the Ontario NDP leadership election as being too high saying, "What you get by doing that is you manifestly limit the number of people who are outside the party establishment, and who have available big backers of one kind or another."

Laxer subsequently began the Ginger Project calling for the Ontario NDP to issue a comprehensive manifesto of polices and build support for their ideas rather than put all their resources into winning marginal ridings.