DELTA, B.C. — Liberal leader Justin Trudeau said Wednesday that he did not scuttle a sitting Quebec MP’s chance to run for re-election because she questioned his credentials as a feminist.
Eva Nassif told the Globe and Mail that she was not nominated to run in the Vimy riding because she did not publicly support Trudeau as a feminist following the SNC-Lavalin scandal, which led to the resignation of two female cabinet ministers.
“I can confirm that was not the reason she was red-lit,” Trudeau said in Delta, B.C.
Nassif didn’t meet the standards of the Liberal party’s protocol for vetting candidates, Trudeau said, but did not give a reason why.
“The process around a green-light committee is conducted independently according to the rules that we have,” Trudeau said. “I trust the processes we’ve established as a party and I know those processes are properly followed.”
Nassif announced in August that she would not seek a second term in the riding north of Montreal, citing personal reasons.
But riding-association president Giuseppe Margiotta told The Canadian Press at the time that Nassif was pushed out.
The Liberals named Annie Koutrakis is their candidate for Vimy earlier this month.
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