Daudrich disqualification a mistake

Wally Daudrich is a polarizing figure who holds controversial views on a number of issues, but it was a mistake for the Progressive Conservative Party to deny him the opportunity to compete for the party’s nomination in the Turtle Mountain constituency.

Daudrich received more votes than party leader Obby Khan in the party’s recent leadership contest, but narrowly lost the race due to a weighted-point system the party used for that contest. According to senior party sources, he received the overwhelming majority of leadership votes cast by party members in Turtle Mountain.

Given that reality, it is difficult to understand why the PC Party has disqualified Daudrich from seeking the nomination to run as the party’s candidate in the riding in the upcoming provincial general election. Party president Peter Smith told the Brandon Sun last week that Daudrich was barred from seeking the nomination after he failed to meet “certain conditions during the vetting process,” but that explanation glosses over the fact Daudrich had passed the party’s vetting process for the leadership contest last year.

The timing of the disqualification is also curious, given that the party had set a June 2 deadline for registration as a candidate for the nomination. As a result, the deadline for additional candidates has now passed and, with the rejection of Daudrich’s candidacy, the only other person seeking the nomination — Mark Custance, a councillor in the Municipality of Two Borders — appears poised to win the nomination by acclamation.

That may be a tidy outcome for Khan and his party’s executive, but it could have a tectonic impact on the fortunes of the party in the next election, which is scheduled for October of next year but could be called before then.

Daudrich has a reputation for taking positions and saying things that offend some voters, but he is also widely perceived inside the party as a leader of its socially conservative wing — a faction that controls many of the party’s rural Manitoba riding associations and contributes a large portion of money and volunteers to the party at election time.

If that group concludes that Daudrich was robbed of the party’s leadership and then unfairly barred from seeking the Turtle Mountain nomination, it could result in lower donations for the party and fewer campaign workers at a time when that support is desperately needed for the approaching campaign.

If that happens, it could put several long-held Tory ridings in danger of being lost to the NDP.

Such an outcome is far from implausible. Last summer, the Tories came close to losing the byelection in the Spruce Woods riding after Khan refused Daudrich’s request to be given the party’s nomination without a nomination contest. The riding had been held by the Tories since its creation decades ago, yet the PC candidate, Colleen Robbins, won by just 70 votes.

Turtle Mountain has long been regarded as a safe Tory seat, but the NDP have nominated Rick Pauls as the party’s candidate for the next election. He is a serious challenger with plenty of name recognition in the riding, having previously served as mayor of Killarney between 2007 and 2020. He is currently on the town council.

Given the likelihood that the Turtle Mountain contest will be much closer than in previous elections, the Tories would have benefited from a nomination contest that increased membership totals, attracted new members and raised money for the coming campaign. Instead, Custance will likely be appointed as the party’s candidate and many of Daudrich’s supporters will likely feel their views and interests have been disregarded yet again by their party.

That points to the real problem with the way the Tories have handled the Daudrich issue. Instead of working to heal the obvious divisions within their party following the tight leadership contest that saw Khan become leader despite receiving fewer votes than Daudrich, the party leadership has erected barriers that create the appearance of a grudge.

Instead of allowing Daudrich to seek the Turtle Mountain nomination and ensuring a fair contest was conducted, they appear to have botched the process. By doing so, they have jeopardized their hold on Turtle Mountain. Under the circumstances, nobody should be surprised if Pauls emerges as the election winner.

Deveryn Ross is a political commentator living in Brandon.

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