VANCOUVER—The federal Liberal candidate up against NDP Jagmeet Singh has resigned following a Star Vancouver report on comments she made on the Chinese social media app, WeChat, underlining the race of both her and Singh in a plea to voters. In a statement released on Wednesday morning, Wang said she has been proud to call Burnaby South her home since arriving in Canada as a newcomer 20 years ago. Wang said she had deep respect for the party leader. “I made comments online that also referenced Jagmeet Singh`s cultural background. My choice of words wasn`t well-considered and didn`t reflect my intent, and for that, I sincerely apologize to Mr. Singh,” the statement read.“After consideration with my supporters, I have decided to step aside as the Liberal candidate in the Burnaby South by-election. I believe in the progress that Justin Trudeau and the Liberal team are making for British Columbians and all Canadians, and I do not wish for any of my comments to be a distraction in that work.”On Saturday, Wang used WeChat to urge supporters to vote for her, “the only Chinese candidate” in the riding, rather than NDP leader Jagmeet Singh, who she identified as “of Indian descent.” Singh, who is vying for his first seat in the House of Commons, is Canada’s first non-white federal party leader. The other candidates are Conservative Jay Shin and People’s Party of Canada’s Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson.Translated from Chinese, part of Wang’s post read: “If we can increase the voting rate, as the only Chinese candidate in this riding, if I can garner 16,000 votes I will easily win the byelection, control the election race and make history! My opponent in this byelection is the NDP candidate Singh of Indian descent!”Wang used the term “hua yi” to refer to people of the Chinese diaspora and used the term “yin yi” to refer to people of India’s diaspora.On Tuesday ...
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