PQ volunteer fired after being caught on video stealing rival's flyer
Another case of apparent sabotage is hitting the Quebec election campaign after a second video showed a party's flyer being swiped from an elector's home.
On Tuesday, Parti Quebecois Leader Paul St. Pierre Plamondon admitted one of his party's volunteers removed a leaflet belonging to the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) in the off-island riding of Masson.
Video footage from a doorbell camera dated Sept. 20 showed the volunteer working for candidate Stephane Handfield swiping the rival's flyer from a front porch.
Addressing the media on Tuesday, St. Pierre Plamondon said the volunteer has been fired.
"There's maybe 3,000 volunteers and they come to work and we don't look at the past or the resume of everyone," the PQ leader said.
The embarrassment for his party came one day after his own party was targeted in a flyer-swiping incident that was also captured on surveillance camera.
In that case, video showed Quebec solidaire candidate Marie-Eve Rancourt dropping off one of her flyers in a homeowner's mailbox and removing that of her opponent — the PQ leader.
Rancourt, a lawyer, apologized for the incident soon after the video surfaced online and hours later announced she was stepping down from the race.
Some constituents in the riding were clearly upset about the stunt.
"She's a lawyer, and if you talk about fairness, that's not a way to be elected and get trust from the people," one man told CTV News.
Another constituent told CTV her behaviour was simply "unacceptable."
It's a major upset for the party and for the people who voted already cast their ballot on the east-end Montreal riding. Votes for Rancourt that were cast on advance voting days held Sunday and Monday will be cancelled when the ballots are counted, according to Elections Quebec. Ballots with her name will be crossed out by hand on election day, on Oct. 3.
"It is a very, very disappointing situation. I think people would know that we would have preferred that this situation would not have happened," said Nadeau-Dubois on Tuesday during a campaign stop.
The election authority told CTV News that almost a quarter of electors have already voted in Camille-Laurin, with 11,048 voted.
A record 23 per cent of Quebec's 6.3 million eligible voters participated in two days of advanced polls, Elections Quebec said Tuesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.