Third N.S. candidate withdraws because of old Internet postings

Inappropriate, sexist and homophobic language left lingering on the Internet has been exacting a toll on the list of political hopefuls in Nova Scotia’s election, with a third candidate forced to withdraw Tuesday.

The Tories sent out a terse news release Tuesday afternoon announcing that their candidate for Dartmouth South, Jad Crnogorac, was being dropped because of her social media postings.

Her postings included an off-colour joke about a date rape drug referred to as “roofies,” and a comment that white people not winning Black Entertainment Television awards is an example of “inequality.”

The withdrawal came a day after CTV News published excerpts from the Bullpen website of Dartmouth East candidate Bill McEwen, a youthful prospect for the NDP in a riding that appeared to be a hard-fought contest. The former military officer and journalist had attempted to take the website down — after not posting on it since 2013 — but someone managed to find it from a cached archive.

In addition to derogatory terms for gay people, the opening statement of the site’s mission noted, “in a world of breast implants, fast food and cheap beer, what’s not to love about being a man.”

It claims to have been designed to help people with columns that have topics ranging from “booze to boobs.”

The content included a number of columns on sexual topics with titles such as “ovulation: man’s best friend,” and “forbidden fruit.”

McEwen submitted his resignation — though under election rules his name will still appear on the ballot, as will Crnogorac’s.

McEwen said he is supportive of equal rights and apologized for what he called misogynistic comments that reflect poor judgement.

On Tuesday, each of the party leaders were discussing vetting procedures and longing for a world where people were more upfront about their social media activities when applying to run.