IT'S NOT AN ELECTION ITS AN APPOINTMENT
Fort McMurray board 'appalled' Laila Goodridge appointed to run for Conservatives in federal electionGoodridge resigned as UCP MLA for Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche earlier this month so she could run federally.
Yurdiga won the 2019 election with 79.9 per cent of the vote.
Author of the article: Ashley Joannou
Publishing date: Aug 20, 2021 •
Laila Goodridge. File photo
The board of the Fort McMurray-Cold Lake Electoral District Association says it does not support or recognize the appointment of Laila Goodridge to run for the Conservatives in that riding this federal election.
In a statement posted online Friday, the association’s board says it was “blindsided” by the decision by the Conservative Party of Canada to appoint Goodridge as its candidate without running a nomination contest.
Goodridge replaced former MP David Yurdiga who is not seeking re-election due to private medical issues. Yurdiga told party Leader Erin O’Toole his decision on Aug. 14, one day before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared a snap election for Sept. 20.
The statement, which is not signed by individual board members, says the board had multiple “outstanding and credible candidates” interested in seeking the nomination within hours of being told about Yurdiga’s resignation and was preparing to hold a contest in as little as one week.
The board says it was “appalled” and “blindsided” to find out that someone had been appointed by the party.
The Conservative Party of Canada’s rules and procedures for candidate nominations allow national officials to alter or suspend the rules in the event a general election is called. Any such decision is final.
The local board says there was no consultation from the party with the board on any level.
“The federal party has failed to not only consult its conservative membership and the board, but has also grossly failed its conservative values and principles,” the statement says.
“It has been made abundantly clear that your voice does not matter despite the party continually promoting itself as a grassroots organization.”
Neither Goodridge, the association, nor a spokesperson for the Conservative Party of Canada responded to requests for comment by deadline.
Goodridge resigned as UCP MLA for Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche earlier this month so she could run federally. In a Facebook message on Thursday she thanked “the hundreds of residents of Fort McMurray-Cold Lake” who signed the paperwork required to get her name on the federal ballot.
The federal riding of Fort McMurray-Cold Lake was created in 2012 from portions of existing ridings. Yurdiga won the 2019 election with 79.9 per cent of the vote.
The board of the Fort McMurray-Cold Lake Electoral District Association says it does not support or recognize the appointment of Laila Goodridge to run for the Conservatives in that riding this federal election.
In a statement posted online Friday, the association’s board says it was “blindsided” by the decision by the Conservative Party of Canada to appoint Goodridge as its candidate without running a nomination contest.
Goodridge replaced former MP David Yurdiga who is not seeking re-election due to private medical issues. Yurdiga told party Leader Erin O’Toole his decision on Aug. 14, one day before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared a snap election for Sept. 20.
The statement, which is not signed by individual board members, says the board had multiple “outstanding and credible candidates” interested in seeking the nomination within hours of being told about Yurdiga’s resignation and was preparing to hold a contest in as little as one week.
The board says it was “appalled” and “blindsided” to find out that someone had been appointed by the party.
The Conservative Party of Canada’s rules and procedures for candidate nominations allow national officials to alter or suspend the rules in the event a general election is called. Any such decision is final.
The local board says there was no consultation from the party with the board on any level.
“The federal party has failed to not only consult its conservative membership and the board, but has also grossly failed its conservative values and principles,” the statement says.
“It has been made abundantly clear that your voice does not matter despite the party continually promoting itself as a grassroots organization.”
Neither Goodridge, the association, nor a spokesperson for the Conservative Party of Canada responded to requests for comment by deadline.
Goodridge resigned as UCP MLA for Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche earlier this month so she could run federally. In a Facebook message on Thursday she thanked “the hundreds of residents of Fort McMurray-Cold Lake” who signed the paperwork required to get her name on the federal ballot.
The federal riding of Fort McMurray-Cold Lake was created in 2012 from portions of existing ridings. Yurdiga won the 2019 election with 79.9 per cent of the vote.
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