Both female candidates exit Alberta PC race
The only two women running for the Progressive Conservative leadership abruptly dropped out of the race Tuesday, with Calgary-North West MLA Sandra Jansen saying she had been driven from the contest by harassment.
Jansen and former MLA Donna Kennedy-Glans put out statements within minutes of each other late Tuesday afternoon announcing they were withdrawing from the provincial leadership race.
In her statement, Jansen said events at the weekend PC convention had left her “quite shaken.”
“Insults were scrawled on my nomination forms. Volunteers from another campaign chased me up and down the hall, attacking me for protecting women’s reproductive rights, and my team was jeered for supporting children’s rights to a safe school environment,” claimed Jansen, calling the convention the “final straw” after months of being harassed online.
Jansen has been an outspoken opponent of former Conservative MP Jason Kenney, who is running for the PC leadership on a platform of uniting the party with the more right-wing Wildrose.
While not mentioning Kenney by name, she took aim at “Trumpstyle politics imported to Alberta from Ottawa” and referenced his campaign’s move to bus in youth delegates to swamp the election for the PC Youth Association executive.
“My presence in this race has so enraged a socially regressive element that I fear it will take away from our ability to fight what is turning out to be a very hostile takeover attempt on the party ... I will continue to fight these bullying tactics,” said Jansen, known for her advocacy on issues such as LGBTQ rights.
There were six candidates on stage for Saturday’s leadership forum, all of whom, besides Kenney, are opposed to merging the PCs with the Wildrose.
Kennedy-Glans said in her statement that she was leaving the race because “politics in Alberta is polarizing and there is limited opportunity for centrist voices to be heard.”
“Many Albertans are centrists, and sooner or later a centrist movement will take shape around them,” she said.
In a statement, Kenney did not address Jansen’s allegations she had been harassed by his supporters but said he was disappointed that both of the candidates had withdrawn.
“It is important to have a range of views and choices in a leadership election such as this one. There must be room in any freeenterprise coalition for the ideas championed by both Sandra and Donna,” he said.
Jansen, Kennedy- Glans and Kenney did not respond to requests for comment.
Party president Katherine O’Neill said in a statement that Jansen’s allegations will be referred to the party’s leadership election committee for review. “I am deeply concerned,” she said.
“We are committed to a fair, open and transparent race. Leadership contests by their nature are divisive, but we expect candidates and their supporters to conduct themselves in a respectful manner.”
Interim PC Leader Ric McIver said he was surprised that both women had pulled out of the race and found it “disturbing” if it was because of intimidation, though he added he did not witness harassment on the weekend.
“I’m not sure what action I can take. People say mean and nasty things all the time. I’m not excusing it. There is no excuse for it, let me be clear on that, there is no excuse for making anyone feel unsafe and I think we have to be doubly careful about making women feel unsafe in politics,” he said.
The PC party announced Tuesday that Vermilion-Lloydminster MLA Richard Starke and Calgary lawyer Byron Nelson have joined Kenney as being officially registered with Elections Alberta as leadership candidates.
That leaves former St. Albert MLA Stephen Khan as the only candidate left who needs to file nomination papers by the party’s Nov. 10 deadline.
The party will elect a new leader at a delegated convention next March in Calgary. Delegate selection meetings in ridings begin in less than two weeks.