Originally, Harper’s office set March 12 as the date for the by-election, but his office announced a change in the date on Monday.

There will be a NDP convention in Toronto during the same week as the by-election. The NDP Party is electing a new leader to replace interim leader Nycole Turmel who took over the Party after Layton’s death.

The NDP election vote will take place on March 24. There are eight candidates seeking to become the new leader of the NDP party.

The Conservative and Green party have already selected representative candidates. The Liberal Party has not held their nomination as of yet.

Before his death, Jack Layton held the Toronto-Danforth riding for over seven years.

Election Held To Determine Who Will Replace Jack Layton

Popular children’s singer and songwriter, Raffi has written another children’s song with the inspiration of Jack Layton. The singer used words and sentiments from Layton’s last letter written to the people of Canada.

The song “Letter To A Nation” is a way to keep the good will and wisdom of Layton forever with the people.

Layton’s wife, Olivia Chow is very happy about the song. She is hoping that it will be an inspiration to children all over the world for many generations.

Listen to “Letter to a Nation” (MP3)

This is not the first time that the singer has look to some of the greatest people in the world for inspiration.

Raffi has written songs influenced by Nelson Mandela, Jane Goodall and the Dialai Lama. Raffi enjoys spreading peace and goodwill to children everywhere through his music.

Raffi turns Jack Layton's Letter Into Song - LISTEN

Raffi has stated that the positivity of the letter resonated powerfully within him and he set his mind to capturing the essence of it in a song called “Letter to a Nation.”

Listen to “Letter to a Nation” (MP3)

He ended up choosing the final section of Layton’s letter for the chorus. It reads: “My friends, love is better than anger / Hope is better than fear / Optimism is better than despair / So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic / and we’ll change the world.”

The catchy new song has received warm blessings from Layton’s wife. She stated that she was deeply touched by the sentiment and strongly hopes that children will become inspired by the message.

The song is now available via a free download on the Center for Child Hounoring’s official website. Raffi is renowned throughout Canada and has worked with many famous celebrities in his career.

Raffi turns Jack Layton's letter into song

“I have a new cancer, non-prostate cancer, that’s going to require further treatment,” Layton said in news conference in Toronto on Monday afternoon. “I’m going to fight this cancer now so I can be back to fight for families when Parliament resumes.”

Layton advised NDP president, Brian Topp, to consult with the NDP Parliamentary caucus and convene a meeting to appoint an interim party leader. Layton recommended newly elected MP Nycole Turmel (Hull-Aylmer) for the spot. The caucus will meet Wednesday to discuss Layton’s recommendation, and announce its decision on Thursday.

Layton is a dynamic and well-loved leader of the NDP, and by a wide margin the most popular party leader in Canadian politics. This popularity is credited with the landslide victories by the NDP in the last elections, most evident in Quebec, where the NDP took 58 of the 78 seats for the province.

Well wishes are flooding in for Layton, and the NDP has set up a page to send him get well messages on their website.

Jack Layton Leaves to Fight Cancer Anew

The proposed policy does not necessarily limit the amount of credit that a family can obtain, but instead focuses on the amount of interest that can be charged on the debt they have. In a bold move, Layton is asking that interest rates be capped at no more than five percent higher than the current prime rate, saving consumers a hefty amount of interest over what many are now paying with the current average interest rate of 19 percent.

The proposal would also limit the size of credit lines offered to those with poor credit histories or low income that will in turn reduce the amount of defaulted debt in the future.

The hope is that with this type of system consumers will be encouraged to live within their means rather than buying on credit, using methods such as layaway or saving up to make purchases. In theory, the proposal would greatly reduce the personal debt levels of Canada’s working poor.

Finally, A Common Sense Approach To Consumer Debt

To Layton the important thing is that you just focus on the dream and make sure you get things done. He wants to make sure that his political opponents realize that despite this cancer diagnosis, he is ready to make strides in the Canadian legislature and capture more seats for the New Democratic Party. Layton will draw on the support on family and friends in order to defeat the cancer. Members of all political parties have been sending well wishes. Layton has been the leader of the New Dems since 2002.

The party has actually taken a step forward electorally in many ways with the election of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Harper is very dedicated to work with all parties, including the one Layton leads in order to get the economy moving again. Layton will play a key role as Harper tries to strike a deal with certain members of his coalition government. Despite the cancer diagnosis, Layton said he simply could not wait to get back to work on Monday morning. Harper considers the NDB a major part of his coalition government.

Jack Layton Expects To Beat Prostate Cancer