Ontario New Democrats appear to be paying a price in Scarborough-Guildwood for how the party handled the nomination of a byelection candidate in the riding last year.
Adam Giambrone, a former Toronto councillor, sought the nomination shortly before it occurred last July, and won by four votes over Amarjeet Kaur Chhabra, a labour organizer.
Eight members of the riding association executive later disputed the vote, calling on the party to provide "proof of identity" for 12 people the eight members said had voted but were not found on riding membership lists.
Ballots for the meeting were destroyed, however, and the party’s provincial council last fall decided to look no further into the association’s charge that several people had voted improperly.
In a May 30 release, Mitzie Hunter, the Liberal who won the bylection, announced Chhabra had endorsed her candidacy in the June 12 provincial vote while identifying Chhabra as a "former NDP nomination candidate."
"I haven’t canvassed yet with Mitzie, but I plan to," Chhabra said in an interview, saying what happened last summer "definitely left a bitter taste."
Though involved with the NDP since she arrived in Canada in 1999, Chhabra said Hunter deserved to be re-elected, and was also someone who could stop one of Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak’s candidates from carrying out Hudak’s agenda.
"For myself, the (provincial New Democratic) party left me, I didn’t leave the party," Chhabra added.
In the release, Hunter called Chhabra, who is registered to run for the Ward 44 Scarborough East council seat, a tireless community worker and "a strong advocate for young women of all backgrounds."
Shuja Syed, Hunter’s current NDP opponent in Scarborough-Guildwood, couldn’t be reached for comment, but Viresh Raghubeer, president of the riding association, said last summer’s events have lessened the strength of local volunteer support for Syed.
"It has left the riding association quite demoralized," said Raghubeer, adding Syed, a realtor who recently moved to the riding, is a good candidate who bears no responsibility for the drop in morale.
"It’s just unfortunate this is affecting him," said Raghubeer, adding party loyalists in the riding still believe something improper occurred at Giambrone’s nomination, and that the ONDP needs to return to its principles.
"We’re hoping to do some housecleaning after this election."
Hunter is also facing PC candidate Ken Kirupa, who ran against her last August, and other challengers.