 His most notable time as union president was during Canada's fishing dispute with the European Union, known as the Turbot War.He was elected leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador NDP at the party's leadership convention held March 7, 2015, defeating two other contenders with 68% support on the first ballot.In the 2015 election, McCurdy failed to win a seat in the House of Assembly and was defeated by Siobhán Coady by nearly 1000 votes.