Tory MPP takes aim at her own party with bill

A Progressive Conservative MPP whose husband claims the last election for party president was rigged against him is proposing a law requiring official vote tallies be filed with Ontario’s chief elections officer to ensure “transparency.”

Cambridge MPP Belinda Karahalios said she tabled the private members’ bill because there are no laws in Ontario “prohibiting undemocratic actions” in internal elections for any political party — especially her own.

“The old boys in the back rooms need to know their gig is up,” Karahalios added in a news release. “There needs to be consequences for those who thwart the will of grassroots party members through undemocratic actions.”

But she won’t have the support of Premier Doug Ford, which effectively condemns the bill that his office said is also being opposed by the government.

“No, I won’t,” the premier said

Thursday when asked if he would back the bill when it comes to the legislature for a vote Dec. 12.

“There’s a few things that happened under the previous leader but I, myself, am having a transparent process,” he added in a reference to a handful of nominations under Patrick Brown, which prompted the party to hold new votes before the 2018 provincial election.

The MPP’s husband and longtime party activist, Jim Karahalios, filed a $100,000 lawsuit against the party in Ontario Superior Court last month alleging improprieties in the internal election for president last November in which more votes were cast than there were eligible voters.

Those allegations have not been proven in court and the PC party has said it stands by the “integrity of the results” from that balloting.

Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser applauded the principles in the bill, saying internal party elections are “foundations of our democracy.”