Conservatives lose candidate in Québec-Centre

Ruby Pratka, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

editor@qctonline.com

The Conservative Party will not be able to run a candidate in the downtown riding of Québec- Centre after candidate Chanie Thériault’s application was refused by Elections Canada.

Thériault and the Québec- Centre Conservative riding association both referred requests for comment to the party, which did not respond to a QCT interview request by press time; the area’s two local Conservative MPs, Gérard Deltell and Pierre Paul-Hus, also did not respond to requests for comment. However, Paul-Hus did attempt to explain Thériault’s situation to Radio-Canada.

Paul-Hus told the public broadcaster that Thériault’s candidacy had been refused because of a missing document.

“Chanie Thériault showed up with her documents on Monday [April 7, the last day on which parties could register candidates] with our regional organizer. She waited 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, the returning officer came to see her and said, ‘Congratulations, you’re going to be a candidate,’” Paul-Hus said. A day later, he said, Thériault learned her candidacy was being refused because of a missing document – an attestation from the official campaign agent. According to Elections Canada, candidates must submit a nomination package including a personal information form, proof of identity, a statement of support signed by 100 voters from the candidate’s riding, signed declarations from a campaign agent, auditor and delegate and a statement of endorsement from their party (unless running as an independent). The deadline to submit these documents was 2 p.m. on April 7.

Elections Canada spokesperson Serge Fleyfel said the agency did not comment on specific cases.

However, he said returning officers are tasked with reviewing a prospective candidate’s nomination documents to make sure all the necessary elements are there. “If the nomination [package] is not complete, returning officers cannot confirm the candidate. If this happens before the close of nominations, another candidate can be nominated. … If this hap- pens afterwards, it’s too late and no replacement can be put forward.”

Paul-Hus told Radio-Canada the party was expecting that Elections Canada would “re- vise” its decision on Thériault’s eligibility in time for the elec- tion. However, Fleyfel said there was no mechanism in the Canada Elections Act to appeal the refusal of a candidate’s application.

“Elections Canada has finalized the list of confirmed candidates who will have their name appear on the ballot. The timelines set in the Act are important to allow enough time for ballots to be printed and have the necessary quality assurance checks done in time for advance polls,” he added.

Québec-Centre is the only riding in the country with no Conservative candidate on the ballot. Voters in the downtown riding haven’t elected a Conservative MP since 1988. Liberal MP Jean-Yves Duclos is running for a fourth term; polling aggregator 338Canada suggests he is likely to keep the seat, with the Liberals polling at 51 per cent support in the riding compared to 36 per cent for the second-place Bloc Québécois. Tommy Bureau of the NDP and Daniel Brisson of the People’s Party are running a distant third and fourth; the candidacy of Félix-Antoine Bérubé-Simard of the Green Party was refused by Elections Canada because of concerns about the validity of some signatures.

The federal election takes place on April 28. Between April 13 and 22, Elections Canada offers a variety of advance voting options. For more information on advance voting, visit elections.ca and click on “Key dates.”