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Canada Proud spent more than $100k boosting online posts: Elections Canada docs

Canada Proud is part of a new wave of online advocacy groups representing both sides of the political spectrum.
Canada Proud is part of a new wave of online advocacy groups representing both sides of the political spectrum. Global News

OTTAWA — Elections Canada documents say Canada Proud has spent more than $100,000 this campaign season boosting its online anti-Trudeau message, with financing coming from thousands of Canadians as well as several key big-ticket donors.

The third-party advertising group, which functions mostly as a popular Facebook page sharing memes and political content, is the federal outgrowth of a similar group focused on Ontario provincial politics.

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Canada Proud’s expenses are almost exclusively for amplifying its content on Facebook and Instagram, though some money has also gone toward advertising in ethnic media.

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The group received almost a quarter of a million dollars in donations from nearly 2,100 Canadians, though about $65,000 came from donors who gave $200 or less.

About 60 per cent of the funding the group has reported up to this point comes from three entities: a Calgary-based multi-industry company and its founder; and a national association of contractors.

The group’s founder says Canada Proud is a voice for the many Canadians who are tired of the Liberal government.

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