Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott wants to hold the government’s feet to the fire over findings by Ontario’s Chief Electoral Officer that the Liberals appear to have attempted to bribe a candidate to drop out of the Sudbury by-election.
Following up on his questions to the premier on Feb. 26, Arnott once again challenged the government in Question Period to come clean and to hold those responsible to account.
“Instead of creating a culture which respects and adheres to the spirit and letter of the elections law, the premier has created a ‘win at all costs’ culture in her office, even if that means cheating,” Arnott charged.
On Feb. 19, Ontario’s Chief Electoral Officer, Greg Essensa, submitted a bombshell report, which found that Patricia Sorbara and Gerry Lougheed Jr. appear to have broken the Ontario Elections Act by attempting to bribe a candidate not to run in the by-election by offering a government appointment.
In his report, Essensa stated: “Having reviewed the evidence and finding from this regulatory investigation, I am of the opinion that the actions of Gerry Lougheed Jr. and Patricia Sorbara amount to apparent contraventions of subsections 96.1(e) of the Election Act as reflected in my attached report.” Sorbara serves as Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Deputy Chief of Staff and Mr. Lougheed is a Liberal operative who was appointed by the Liberal Government to the Sudbury Police Services Board, which he currently serves as chair.
“[The premier] either delegated too much authority to her Machiavellian staff and political operatives, or she signed off on the plan to offer an enticement to Olivier to get him to stand down as a candidate, or worse, she ordered her staff to make the offer, which can only be called a bribe and a breach of Ontario’s election law,” Arnott argued.
There are currently two ongoing police investigations into the Liberals actions during the Sudbury by-election.
“The premier has a responsibility to uphold the integrity of her office. When will she demand the resignations of Ms. Sorbara and Mr. Lougheed?” he asked.
