Douglas Todd: Jagmeet Singh is among those discovering so-called ethnic politics has power, but also limits. Our interactive map shows the ethnic breakdown of Metro Vancouver ridings

You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.

For an illustration of how Canadians do not necessarily vote for a political candidate based on ethnicity, take the case of federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Polls strongly suggest the left-wing party of Singh, an orthodox Sikh whose parents came from India, is not going to win any seats in the ridings with the strongest proportions of Sikhs and others with roots in India.

As Kwantlen Polytechnic University political scientist Shinder Purewal says, the man who has led the NDP for eight years does not look likely to score victories in the urban ridings of Surrey, Brampton, Ont., or Calgary, Alta.

The loyalty of South Asian Canadians to the federal Liberals is deeper than their loyalty to a leader of the same ethnicity, Purewal said. Studies by the late UBC political scientist John Woods, he said, found Canadians with roots in India have long tended to vote Liberal federally, and NDP provincially.

Postmedia’s interactive map showing the ethnic composition of Metro Vancouver’s federal ridings suggests only a modest correlation to the ethnicity of candidates.

In Surrey constituencies in which 24 to 36 per cent of residents have roots in India, a slight majority of candidates have roots in India. But there are also major party candidates of European and other backgrounds.

A daily roundup of Opinion pieces from the Sun and beyond.

By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of Informed Opinion will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

Interested in more newsletters? Browse here.

In Richmond and South Vancouver, there are three ridings in which 36 to 56 per cent of residents are Chinese Canadian.

In one of those electoral districts, Richmond Centre-Marpole, four candidates are ethnic Chinese. But in another riding, Vancouver........

© Vancouver Sun