Green Party co-leaders Jonathan Pedneault and Elizabeth May share a laugh during their election campaign launch, in Montreal, on March 23.Evan Buhler/Reuters
The Green Party says it has decided not to run candidates in some federal ridings in order to boost progressive parties and stop the Conservatives from forming government in the April 28 election.
The party is facing scrutiny for being included in this week’s federal leaders’ debates because it has only 232 candidates formally nominated with Elections Canada. There are 343 ridings across the country.
Green Party spokesperson Rod Leggett said in a statement that as issues arose confirming candidates with Elections Canada, the party was also looking at what concrete actions it could take to encourage the progressive vote.
“The Green Party had every intention of running a full slate, but we did run into challenges with certain [returning officers] and we are looking into that matter with Elections Canada now,” Mr. Leggett said.
“This said, we had asked fellow progressive parties to work together to ensure we don’t get the Conservatives in government ... With this in mind, we chose not to run candidates in select ridings.”
The Globe and Mail had asked the party for clarity on the matter after its co-leaders made seemingly contradictory statements, which Mr. Leggett called “complementary.”
On Sunday, co-Leader Elizabeth May told The Globe that the party had planned to run a full slate of candidates, but not all successfully completed the Elections Canada process. She said this was in part because of the challenge of gathering signatures from members of the public in a snap-election scenario. She also said that a lot of returning officers made “different and sometimes inconsistent decisions” about accepting forms and signatures.
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On Tuesday, co-Leader Jonathan Pedneault told Radio-Canada that it was a strategic decision not to run a full slate. He said that the party decided to not send candidates to certain ridings, particularly where the Conservatives have a better chance at winning than the Greens. He said that the Greens don’t support any candidate from another political party, but call on Green supporters to look at other progressive options if there is no Green candidate.
Last week, the Leaders’ Debate Commission confirmed in a statement that the Green Party was still invited to the debates on Wednesday and Thursday because it provided an endorsed candidate list that met the commission’s criteria. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet has objected to the Greens’ participation, saying it should not qualify.
The Greens met the requirement of having at least one member of Parliament in the House of Commons who had been elected under the party’s banner at the time Parliament was dissolved. The party had also endorsed candidates in at least 90 per cent of the 343 federal ridings – or at least 309 endorsed candidate – 28 days before the election.
A page about debate participation criteria on the commission’s website notes that, given the debates are held “well in advance” of election day, the “parties are not required to demonstrate that those candidates have been formally nominated with Elections Canada.” The debate invitations were sent on April 1, while Elections Canada’s candidate registration deadline was April 7.
When asked about debate participation, Mr. Leggett said the chain of events reflects that they faced obstacles with Elections Canada.
“The rules had always given us some strategic wiggle room, which we are using,” he said in the statement.
He added that there is a “long tradition of certain groups (including certain political parties) in this country who do not want to see the Greens in the debate” but Canadians have always wanted to see them. The Green Party has representation across the country, he said, which is not the case with all parties.
Elections Canada spokesperson Matthew McKenna said in a statement that there is no subjective component to the nomination process, and that they provide guidance and support for prospective candidates to help them complete and file their papers.
They encourage prospective candidates to file paperwork early, he said, as returning officers and staff will review the files and provide guidance where elements of an application do not meet criteria in the act.
“When nomination papers are submitted close to or at the deadline, returning officers don’t have the flexibility to provide further support and have to review the files as-submitted,” he said, meaning that issues can’t be addressed. “The returning officer’s role is to ensure that the nomination package is complete – it’s a simple checklist for them.”
The French debate is taking place on Wednesday and the English debate is taking place on Thursday. Liberal Leader Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, Mr. Blanchet, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, and Mr. Pedneault will be participating in the debates, which will each be two hours long. They will both be held in Montreal.