Sask. Conservative leadership hopeful says he was disqualified despite meeting requirements
A Saskatchewan business owner says while he met the requirements to officially join the federal Conservative leadership race, a clerical issue ended his hopes of leading the party.
While Joseph Bourgault said he takes the Conservative Party of Canada's (CPC) explanation at "face value" he questions whether that was all there was to it.
"Is there some kind of consciousness — that they want to keep you out of the race," he told CTV News during an interview by Zoom.
Bourgault is the co-founder of Canadians for Truth, a group largely born out of opposition to pandemic health measures, which promotes a medically disproven treatment for COVID-19 on its website.
The website also references the "great reset," a phrase used by adherents of a conspiracy theory that frames the COVID-19 pandemic as an attempt by "global elites" to reshape society.
He was also a high-profile supporter of the Ottawa convoy protest earlier in his year.
Bourgault made the trip to the nation's capital during the protest and describes it as a "spiritual experience."
"It was just the most moving experience I've ever had in my life, many of us were shedding tears often over there," Bourgault said in a Zoom interview with CTV News.
"You know, just being in the presence of all the great people, all the great Canadians that were there."
His name was not included among the six candidates who will appear on the ballot when the party picks its leader later this year and won't be included in any debates.
According to Bourgault, that's despite the fact that he was able to raise the total of $300,000 required to enter the race and exceeded the number of required CPC-member signatures before the April 29 deadline.
"It took them a number of days, we couldn't figure out why it was taking so long for them to verify," Bourgault said.
"Then on Sunday night, we received the call."
Bourgault said the party told him the decision came down to a single "inadequacy" in a loan document that was submitted as part of his financing package.
"That doesn't make a lot of sense to us, for the amount of time and energy and effort that goes into something like this If you haven't dotted an 'i' or crossed a 't.'"
Bourgault said there was no specific guidance on how to craft the document.
"Let me be clear here — the error that they're claiming is an error. We didn't see it that way," Bourgault said.
"Based on what was given to us, there's a lot of ambiguity in it … it was so easy for something like that to happen."
CPC has not responded to a request for comment.
Bourgault said that CPC staff spoke "very highly" of him and his campaign team, but the feeling may not be universal.
"We've heard from fairly reliable sources that there were some people (who) don't like people who speak the truth and I'm a truth seeker and a truth speaker," Bourgault said.
"I don't have factual documentation that I can show you. But if there were candidates that operated in the background in any way to get us off the out of the debates, they're really not a legitimate candidate and they're going to struggle."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.