Steve Ashton will announce Friday that he will be a candidate for the leadership of the Manitoba New Democratic Party. (Legislative Assembly of Manitoba)

The race for the leadership of the Manitoba NDP is heating up with a second candidate set to step up.

Steve Ashton, minister of intergovernmental affairs, told CBC News he intends to announce his candidacy officially on Friday.

Ashton, who lives in Thompson, was first elected to the Manitoba Legislature in 1981 and has been re-elected in the general elections of 1986, 1988, 1990, 1995 and 1999.

Andrew Swan resigned Wednesday from his cabinet post as the competitiveness, training and trade minister, becoming the first to throw his hat into the ring.

Finance Minister Greg Selinger, also considered a likely candidate, is still holding his cards close to his chest. When asked by CBC whether he would enter the race, Selinger said that he's not yet saying.

A party leadership convention has been set for Oct. 16-17, with the new leader to be named on the final day.

Gary Doer, who has been the provincial NDP leader since 1988 and the premier of Manitoba since 1999, surprised many political observers by announcing Aug. 27 that he was stepping down. The following day he was introduced in Ottawa by Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Canada's next ambassador to the United States.