Federal politics Sellah entered politics ahead of the
2011 Canadian federal election seeking the NDP nomination for
Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher of which she lost to
Pierre Nantel. She was then nominated by the party for the riding of
Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert and was elected as part of the "Orange Wave" that swept Quebec, defeating three-term
Bloc Québécois MP Carole Lavallée. Sellah was the first Canadian politician elected who was born in Algeria.(NDP). In parliament, Sellah served on the Health Committee for the 1st session of the 41st Parliament, and she then served on the Standing Committee of the Status of Woment. She also served as the assistant Health Critic for the NDP from 2012 until 2013. Sellah ran in the
2015 election in the new Riding of
Montarville, but placed third behind
Liberal Michel Picard, whom she had defeated in 2011. Sellah was once again the NDP's candidate for Montarville for the
2019 election; she came in third with a reduced percentage. She ran for the NDP again in the
2021 Election, but was unsuccessful.
Party politics Following the death of
Jack Layton, Sellah endorsed
Tom Mulcair to be the next leader of the
New Democratic Party. Sellah ran for president of the NDP in 2016 to replace
Rebecca Blaikie, but ultimately lost to
Marit Stiles. In the
2017 NDP leadership election, Sellah supported
Charlie Angus.
Provincial politics Sellah was the president of the
New Democratic Party of Quebec during 2018. She was the New Democratic Party of Quebec's candidate in
La Pinière for the
2018 Quebec general election. ==Electoral record==