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Losing candidate Nate Erskine-Smith has until Tuesday evening to appeal the results
Nate Erskine-Smith speaks to the media after losing the Ontario Liberal Party nomination in the riding of Scarborough Southwest on Saturday. The Ontario Liberal Party is standing by the results of its nomination contest in Scarborough Southwest as losing candidate Nate Erskine-Smith met with his team to discuss next steps after raising concerns about the race.
On Saturday, Liberal members in the east Toronto riding chose businessman Ahsanul Hafiz as their next provincial candidate in a yet-to-be-announced by-election, beating Mr. Erskine-Smith in a close contest. The nomination was seen as a critical step in Mr. Erskine-Smith’s plan to run for leader of the Ontario Liberal party. He is currently a federal MP for the neighbouring riding of Beaches-East York.
The stakes were raised even higher the night before the vote, when Mr. Erskine-Smith’s team released a video with him alongside Prime Minister Mark Carney, who wished him well in provincial politics. Mr. Erskine-Smith has been tight-lipped about his future plans if he were to lose the nomination. His spokespeople did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.
Speaking to reporters at Queen’s Park on Monday, Mr. Hafiz – owner of 30 Domino’s Pizza stores and vice-chair of the federal Liberal Party in Ontario – said Mr. Erskine-Smith has not spoken to him since the results were announced.
“I think we have to paint that riding as red. That is our main focus,” Mr. Hafiz said. After the results of Saturday’s nomination were released, Mr. Erskine-Smith wouldn’t say if he thought the results were fair. He said members of his scrutineering team told him they had “never seen anything like it,” citing “ID issues” of some voters, and that he would talk to his team to see if there was a legitimate reason to challenge the results.
Leading up to the nomination, Mr. Erskine-Smith’s team had also raised concerns about the more than 1,800 memberships that were not counted in the final voters’ list because of invalid entries and duplication. His campaign argued that by disqualifying members, the party had disenfranchised voters, including seniors, who were not able to complete the party’s new two-step validation process. He also questioned why temporary residents could vote in the contest, when others could not.
Interim Ontario Liberal Leader John Fraser said Monday the party ran a fair and free contest. Two other candidates – lawyer Qadira Jackson and immigration consultant Mahmuda Nasrin – were also in the running.
“Nominations are that close sometimes, and they’re hard fought, they’re inside the family. But the people of Scarborough Southwest spoke and they voted, and I’m satisfied that it was a fair and open process,” Mr. Fraser told reporters at Queen’s Park.
“And we’re really excited right now about getting on with the by-election and getting out there and knocking on doors. ” Asked about Mr. Erskine-Smith’s contentions that the race may not have been fair, Mr. Fraser said Mr. Erskine-Smith has to prove it. The Scarborough Southwest seat was vacated in February when former longtime Ontario NDP deputy leader Doly Begum stepped down to run for the federal Liberals.
Mr. Ford is expected to call the by-election in Scarborough Southwest sometime this summer. The Ontario Liberals, who have placed third in the riding for three consecutive elections, are hoping to win it back from the NDP.
Meanwhile, it is unclear whether Mr. Erskine-Smith will still run for leader of the Ontario Liberals. The party will select its new leader on Nov. 21. Two candidates have formally entered the race: Dylan Marando, a former political staffer, and Liberal MPP Lee Fairclough, a former hospital president. A second Liberal MPP, Rob Cerjanec, is also expected to run.
Another potential big-name leadership contender, former federal cabinet minister Navdeep Bains, is said to be strongly considering a bid for Ontario Liberal leader. Mr. Bains recently departed his high-profile job at Rogers Communications.
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