MPP Karahalios' Bill 150 Fights Political Corruption
Dear Fellow Canadians,
The level of political corruption in Ontario is troubling. It’s a black mark on our democracy. But one MPP – Belinda Karahalios – is trying to do something about it, with Bill 150.
For years we have heard reports of all manner of dirty tricks at the party level. The Progressive Conservative Party, in particular, was plagued by “irregularities” that – not surprisingly – favoured establishment politicians. Grassroots social conservative members were again and again obstructed in a not-so-subtle attempt to diminish their influence in the Party.
This happened under former PC leader Patrick Brown, and it has only proliferated under Doug Ford, who himself campaigned on cleaning up the corruption in the PC Party. You can read more about the rigging of the candidate nomination process and also the cheating that took place during the Party executive elections.
In the run-up to the 2018 election, there were dozens of local nomination contests where PC party members were called upon to choose their candidate. In these local races, there were many good pro-life, pro-family candidates in the running. However, we heard repeated, credible reports of party elites engaging in corrupt, undemocratic activities. We were told about fake ballots, people voting who were ineligible, people voting more than once, and members being denied their right to vote.
We have seen good, honest candidates getting slandered, blacklisted and blocked from seeking the Party nomination just because of their deeply held beliefs. We have witnessed manipulation and discrimination.
We know who the culprits are: Establishment insiders. And we know who the targets are: Pro-life, pro-family social conservatives.
How can we even begin to get to the root of a problem like this? Corrupt party insiders seem to have carte blanche – they appear to be untouchable. Well, Belinda Karahalios, PC MPP from Cambridge, has brought forward a private member’s Bill to help eradicate this corruption.
Bill 150 is up for debate this Thursday at Queen’s Park. It is called the “Ensuring Transparency and Integrity in Political Party Elections Act, 2019”.
Mrs. Karahalios describes her private member’s Bill: “The Act requires a report to be filed with the Chief Electoral Officer within seven days after an election and the report must set out, among other things, the number of persons who were eligible to vote in the election, the number of persons who voted and the number of votes that each candidate received. The Act permits a candidate to contest the validity of an election by commencing an action in the Superior Court of Justice; and the Act sets out various offences relating to voting in an election.”
The problem that we have faced up until now is that there are currently no laws in Ontario prohibiting undemocratic actions in internal Party elections. Bill 150 would resolve this glaring omission by applying the same consequences that exist for corruption in General Elections to corruption in internal Party Elections.
It is a common sense Bill that will not only empower grassroots pro-life, pro-family, socially-conservative party members by creating a level playing field, but it will restore integrity to Ontario’s democratic system.
There’s another reason this proposed legislation is so important. If an elected MPP starts speaking out on life and family issues, when it’s time for his/her re-election, a corrupt nomination committee could see to it that the incumbent is pushed out. In fact, if any MPP gets on the wrong side of the Premier or the establishment, he could find himself the target of voter fraud in the nomination process. Bill 150 would prevent this from happening.
To make sure this Bill is passed, we need a majority of MPPs to get on-side. To do that, we need your help! We need you to reach out to your elected representatives by email and by phone as soon as possible. You can do that through our Action Alert Email tool.
Mrs. Karahalios has this to say about Bill 150: “The old boys in the back rooms need to know their gig is up... you’re either for a free and fair election, or you’re not.”
Please help us encourage Ontario MPPs from all parties to get behind this Bill. Let’s call on them to vote YES to Bill 150 on Thursday. Please send an Action Alert Email right now!
Yours for Life, Family, and Faith,
The Campaign Life Coalition Team