OTTAWA — Liberal MPs spent Wednesday behind closed doors pressing the party to change its rules so that only citizens and permanent residents can vote for its next leader, which they argue is necessary to guard against the threat of foreign interference.
Eligibility was but one of the factors caucus discussed about the terms of the imminent race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who faced his caucus for the first time that day since announcing on Monday he would be resigning as party leader and prime minister once his successor was chosen.
The timing of exactly when that will happen remains unclear, with the party’s national board set to meet on Thursday to determine the rules for the upcoming race, including the deadline for memberships, entry fee for candidates and what timeline prospective campaigns have to organize and fundraise.
To allow the race to happen, Parliament has been suspended until Mar.24. Many Liberal MPs say the party must hold an expedited contest to ensure the new leader and next prime minister has time to prepare before the House of Commons resumes, with some suggesting they be in that role no later than early March.
Opposition parties have warned they intend to vote non-confidence in the minority Liberals as quickly as possible to topple the government, which would send the new Liberal leader on the campaign trail after possibility being in the role for only a matter of days or weeks.
Heading into Wednesday’s meeting, which lasted for six hours, many Liberal MPs said while the party must move quickly, it also needs to ensure it was protecting itself from the risk of meddling by foreign actors, a risk many feel may exist should the Liberals not change its rules to allow only citizens and permanent residents to vote.
As it stands, a Liberal membership requires that someone be at least 14 years old. It does not mention the need to be a citizen or have permanent resident status, opening the door for international students and others in Canada on a temporary basis to potentially vote.
“What I can tell you is a lot of us raised the issue and raised the concern about making sure that this race for leader is absolutely secure,” said Taleeb Noormohamed, who represents Vancouver Granville and is the province’s caucus chair.
“Concerns related to membership from non-citizens and non (permanent residents) was absolutely something that came up.”
Liberal party president Sachit Mehra attended the meeting, but left without taking questions from reporters. Its national director, Azam Ishmael, was also in the meeting.
Noormohamed declined to say whether caucus was provided any assurances the rules would change, but said he feels their points were heard.
“Anyone sitting in that room would have heard those concerns and taken seriously.”
The Liberal party is the first federal party to hold a leadership contest after concerns about China and India meddling in Canadian elections broke open, prompting Trudeau’s government to call a public inquiry following months of pressure.
Justice Marie-Josee Hogue is set to release her final report on the foreign interference inquiry by Jan. 31, which means it will land smack in the middle of the Liberals’ contest.
Party spokesman Parker Lund said information about the leadership race would be provided once the rules have been decided.
“Protecting the integrity of our democratic process is a foremost priority of the party,” said Lund.
He also defended the membership criteria in an earlier statement, saying that Liberals have “built the most open and inclusive movement in Canadian politics,” not only by waiving the membership fee but by “expanding participation in our movement, both with respect to age and citizenship status.”
“Our open and inclusive process ensures we hear from more people in the communities we engage with and helps foster civic engagement with those who may one day have the privilege to vote in a federal election.”
Ontario MP Charles Sousa said he hopes to see the party release the leadership rules quickly and that they include feedback provided by caucus on membership rules, saying the party brass made it clear they were there to listen.
Before the meeting, veteran Liberal MP Judy Sgro said it was vital the party had a “solid, transparent and safe process,” to pick a new leader.
“I think you need to be a Canadian citizen, definitely a permanent resident.”
Toronto MP and former public safety minister Marco Mendicino, who recently announced he would not be seeking reelection, said he was also “extremely concerned” about ensuring the integrity of the race.
“At the end of the day we’ve got to be sure that we have a process that is efficient, but that is also very open and transparent.”
With files from Catherine Lévesque
National Post
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