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Greens’ interim leader hoping for clear victory in weekend leadership decision

Oct 2, 2020 | 2:05 PM

OTTAWA — Interim Green Leader Jo-Ann Roberts says she is hoping for a clear winner Saturday when the party’s new leader is elected, to put to rest concerns the race was not legitimate.

The eight-month contest to succeed Elizabeth May will culminate this weekend at an event in Ottawa where one of eight candidates will take the party’s top job.

But events in the last two weeks have clouded the race: one candidate was temporarily expelled, and another discovered the party didn’t forward all the donations made to his campaign.

Roberts says she is concerned by some of the things that happened but doesn’t think it will mean whoever wins won’t have a legitimate victory.

Roberts says she thinks the party handled those problems as well as it could, but that a “clear-cut” result would still be helpful. 

A bigger problem facing the party may be unity, with not all candidates promising to throw their full support to anyone who wins.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 2, 2020.

Rabson Mia, The Canadian Press