ELECTION INTERVENTION
Trustee candidate irate over letter
The City of Windsor has asked the province to determine whether the local Catholic school board acted inappropriately in issuing a letter on the eve of last week’s election warning of candidates seeking “the complete elimination of publiclyfunded Catholic education.” Eric Renaud, who lost his bid for the separate board’s seat representing Windsor wards 3 and 4, claims the letter was targeted at his candidacy and believes it “definitely” cost him the race.
He and public board candidate Alan Halberstadt made headlines during the election campaign when both called for the amalgamation of public and separate school board administrations, a move they said could save local taxpayers an estimated $6 million a year.
The letter, dated Oct. 16 and distributed to the local Catholic community in the two days leading up to the Oct. 22 election, was signed by a number of Catholic leaders, including Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board chair Barb Holland, director of education Terry Lyons and Diocese of London Bishop Ronald Fabbro. Three Catholic Teachers’ Association leaders also signed the letter, which appeared in church bulletins two days before election day and was read out to local congregations by some priests that weekend. “I feel that the vote was stolen from me,” said Renaud. Incumbent Bernard Mastromattei won with 990 votes (49 per cent), ahead of Renaud’s 560 votes (28 per cent) and Andrew Furlong with 474. “Before that letter went out, I had Catholic voters saying they were completely in favour of this merger. After the letter went out, it was the complete opposite,” said Renaud. He said a number of previously identified supporters told him the letter changed their votes. But Renaud, who has filed complaints, and is calling on the city and province to investigate, said the letter actually misrepresents his campaign platform, which he said didn’t call for the elimination of Catholic schools or Catholic education.
While not identifying by name any specific candidates, the letter refers to “a number of” trustee candidates running for the two main school boards “who are suggesting either a merger of administrations ... or the complete elimination of publicly-funded Catholic education altogether.” Describing themselves as “spiritual and academic leaders,” the letter’s authors describe the issue as “imperative” and urge the local Catholic community to “voice your support for Catholic education on October 22nd.”
Said Halberstadt: “It was crafty the way it was worded,” but the letter was “clearly aimed” at Renaud. “They’ve absolutely crossed a line ... you can’t do this,” said Dave Cooke, a former Ontario education minister. In a tweet posted Sunday, Cooke described the letter as “just wrong and inappropriate,” and said it was “completely unacceptable that the director of education, bishop and the church generally interfere this way in the election.” Holland said there was “confusion out there” on the subject and that the Catholic leaders who issued the letter were simply reaching out to the community “to show the other side of the debate.” “I think what is inappropriate is trying to silence voices,” she said of criticism over the letter. “We were not meddling in the election process.”
Chuck Scarpelli, the city’s manager of elections, said the clerk’s office received the complaint from Renaud and has forwarded it to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs for comment.
“We’ve never had a complaint like this before,” he said. Cooke said he doesn’t know Renaud and disagrees with his and Halberstadt’s suggestion of a single publicly funded administration, but a school board director or a school board chair representing the board should remain neutral and not be taking a public position on a political issue in an election. He said it will be up to the provincial government to decide the matter, but laws exist that would forbid such action in a provincial or federal election.
“There should be an investigation,” said Halberstadt, who has been lobbying for years for a single publicly-funded education board in Ontario. He questions the timing of the Catholic leaders’ letter and Holland’s explanation.
“If they wanted a debate, why not well before the Saturday before the election?” said Halberstadt. Renaud first made his proposal for a combined administration earlier in the summer when he announced his candidacy. “We don’t need four school boards doing the exact same thing at the top,” Renaud said at the time.
I think what is inappropriate is trying to silence voices. We were not meddling in the election process.