The Conservative Leadership Elections Committee (LEOC) barred Brown from the race late on Tuesday, citing “serious allegations of wrongdoing” related to funding rules. Brown has denied the charges and says he plans to appeal the decision. The Conservative Party has already referred the allegations against Brown to the interim commissioner of Elections Canada, the independent body charged with ensuring compliance with and enforcement of the rules of the Canada Elections Act. Ontario Liberal MP Adam van Coverden wrote to interim Elections Canada commissioner Mark Senier on Thursday, asking him to look into whether the party will benefit from Brown’s alleged wrongdoing. “Any investigation should not be limited to an individual leadership contestant, but should follow the money if there was potential benefit to the Party as a whole,” van Koeverden wrote in his letter. Van Coverden said the Conservatives could have benefited from a “monetary windfall” from membership dues paid through Brown’s campaign and Brown’s leadership contributions. According to sources who spoke to CBC News, at least one company allegedly paid one of Brown’s campaign workers. The sources said LEOC’s decision to terminate Brown was based on more than verbal allegations and cited documents and financial records. Liberal MP Adam van Koeverden stands up during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on June 3. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press) In his letter, van Koeverden also asked the commissioner to consider whether services provided to the Brown campaign “advance the political interests of the Conservative Party, but [were] paid by third parties.” Brown told CBC’s Power & Politics on Wednesday that while he was presented with allegations that a member of his campaign was being paid by a private company, he was not given details that would allow his team to conduct its own investigation or properly respond to the allegations. In response to van Koeverden’s letter, Brown campaign spokesman Chisholm Pothier reiterated Brown’s claim that the campaign did not have sufficient evidence regarding the allegations. “It appears the Liberals are following the CPC tactic of using Elections Canada to make baseless allegations appear serious,” Pothier said in an email. The Commissioner’s office confirmed it had received both the Conservative Party’s allegations against Brown and van Koeverden’s request to extend the investigation to the party. LEOC communications director Yaroslav Baran declined to comment on van Koeverden’s letter. The CBC has also sought comment from the Conservative Party, but has yet to receive a response. WATCH: Charest on the state of the Conservative leadership race
Charest on the state of the Conservative leadership race
Does Tory leadership candidate Jean Charest think the party kicking his running mate Patrick Brown out of the race is damaging the Tories’ credibility?
