Eve Adams trounced at Liberal nomination meeting
By David Akin, Parliamentary Bureau Chief
First posted: Sunday, July 26, 2015 08:53 PM EDT | Updated: Sunday, July 26, 2015 09:38 PM EDT
It looks like Eve Adams brief and controversial parliamentary career will soon come to an end.
Adams, elected as a Conservative in 2011 to represent the suburban riding of Mississauga—Brampton South, lost her bid Sunday afternoon to become the Liberal candidate in the mid-town riding of Eglinton-Lawrence.
Even though Liberals in the riding said Adams was the favourite of Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, party members there elected Marco Mendicino, a life-long Liberal with long ties to the community he now hopes to represent in the House of Commons.
And it wasn’t close: Mendocino got 1,130 votes to Adams’ 790.
Mendicino will now try to do what has been done just twice in Canadian history: Beat a sitting finance minister in a general election.
But that finance minister — Joe Oliver — is ready for the fight. His team has been working the riding for months knowing that it will be tough for him to repeat his 2011 victory in a riding that has otherwise always voted Liberal. Oliver beat long-time Liberal Joe Volpe in 2011.
Mendocino, a Crown prosecutor whose most notorious case was dealing with the “Toronto 18” terrorists, said he’s ready to paint the riding red again.
“Joe — enjoy your sleep tonight because tomorrow we’re coming after you!” Mendocino said to cheering supporters.
The battle between Adams and Mendocino had forced a nasty split within the Liberal family in the riding but also within the broader Liberal family across the country.
Mendocino’s supporters were angry and confused that Justin Trudeau’s inner circle backed Adams. One, Harrison Jordan, vowed to rip up the Liberal membership card he’s had for seven years if Adams won.
Oliver immediately tried to exploit that schism.
“I welcome Marco Mendicino as the Liberal candidate for Eglinton-Lawrence in the forthcoming federal election,” Oliver said in a statement. “In spite of any forthcoming statement to the contrary, I doubt Justin Trudeau shares my welcome, since the leader of the Liberal Party orchestrated a highly criticized and controversial effort to support the candidacy of Ms. Eve Adams. Justin Trudeau has demonstrated, yet again, poor judgment in trying to parachute his chosen candidate into a riding against the will of the local community.”
Adams conversion from Conservative to Liberal happened only after the Conservative Party of Canada banned her from being one of their candidates.
Adams appealed to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to overturn the party’s decision, a decision which essentially meant that the single mom would have no chance to keep her $160,000-a-year job as an MP. Harper, though, stuck with the decision of party brass.
Former Conservative MP Eve Adams, left, is seen with rival Marco Mendicino on Sunday. (THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Eve Adams trounced at Liberal nomination meeting | AKIN | Toronto & GTA | News |
By David Akin, Parliamentary Bureau Chief
First posted: Sunday, July 26, 2015 08:53 PM EDT | Updated: Sunday, July 26, 2015 09:38 PM EDT
It looks like Eve Adams brief and controversial parliamentary career will soon come to an end.
Adams, elected as a Conservative in 2011 to represent the suburban riding of Mississauga—Brampton South, lost her bid Sunday afternoon to become the Liberal candidate in the mid-town riding of Eglinton-Lawrence.
Even though Liberals in the riding said Adams was the favourite of Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, party members there elected Marco Mendicino, a life-long Liberal with long ties to the community he now hopes to represent in the House of Commons.
And it wasn’t close: Mendocino got 1,130 votes to Adams’ 790.
Mendicino will now try to do what has been done just twice in Canadian history: Beat a sitting finance minister in a general election.
But that finance minister — Joe Oliver — is ready for the fight. His team has been working the riding for months knowing that it will be tough for him to repeat his 2011 victory in a riding that has otherwise always voted Liberal. Oliver beat long-time Liberal Joe Volpe in 2011.
Mendocino, a Crown prosecutor whose most notorious case was dealing with the “Toronto 18” terrorists, said he’s ready to paint the riding red again.
“Joe — enjoy your sleep tonight because tomorrow we’re coming after you!” Mendocino said to cheering supporters.
The battle between Adams and Mendocino had forced a nasty split within the Liberal family in the riding but also within the broader Liberal family across the country.
Mendocino’s supporters were angry and confused that Justin Trudeau’s inner circle backed Adams. One, Harrison Jordan, vowed to rip up the Liberal membership card he’s had for seven years if Adams won.
Oliver immediately tried to exploit that schism.
“I welcome Marco Mendicino as the Liberal candidate for Eglinton-Lawrence in the forthcoming federal election,” Oliver said in a statement. “In spite of any forthcoming statement to the contrary, I doubt Justin Trudeau shares my welcome, since the leader of the Liberal Party orchestrated a highly criticized and controversial effort to support the candidacy of Ms. Eve Adams. Justin Trudeau has demonstrated, yet again, poor judgment in trying to parachute his chosen candidate into a riding against the will of the local community.”
Adams conversion from Conservative to Liberal happened only after the Conservative Party of Canada banned her from being one of their candidates.
Adams appealed to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to overturn the party’s decision, a decision which essentially meant that the single mom would have no chance to keep her $160,000-a-year job as an MP. Harper, though, stuck with the decision of party brass.
Former Conservative MP Eve Adams, left, is seen with rival Marco Mendicino on Sunday. (THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Eve Adams trounced at Liberal nomination meeting | AKIN | Toronto & GTA | News |
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