Hamilton PC candidate says his party decided he should skip local all-candidates’ debate

A Hamilton-area provincial election Progressive Conservative candidate says the decision to skip a local all-candidates' debate next week was made by the Ontario PC party, not him.

We get direction on a day-to-day basis on what we're going to do," Neil Lumsden, who is running in Hamilton East-Stoney Creek, told The Spectator. I was told that on the 25th, we're not participating at this point, so that's the way it is."

Lumsden is a Canadian Football Hall of Famer who played for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Toronto Argonauts and Edmonton Eskimos. He won three Grey Cups with Edmonton and one as the Ticats' general manager in 1999.

I know (the debate) is on the 25th and if we as a group or as a team, so to speak, had decided not to participate, then, as part of that team, you don't participate."

Listen, I'm fine with it," Lumsden said. I believe strongly that we do things as a party and I'm one of the people on Doug Ford's team and, as corny as it sounds, if the decision is made, then the decision is made. I believe that, whatever the decision made ... I'm fine with it."

Lumsden's campaign manager Blair Hains said he wouldn't call the decision not to participate in the May 25 Cable 14 debate a directive from the Ontario PC party. I'm not sure I would totally describe it that way ... We're part of a team and obviously we have those discussions. We then made the decision that Neil's time would be better spent, as he does every day, knocking on doors and talking to the voters of Hamilton East-Stoney Creek directly."

Two other PC candidates - Fred Bennink in Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas and Sarah Bokhari in Hamilton Centre - will not participate in their Cable 14 televised debates either. A third candidate - Michael Spadafora in Hamilton Mountain - has not responded to invitations to participate in his riding's debate.

Only Donna Skelly, a PC incumbent running in Flamborough-Glanbrook, has said she will participate.

Bill Custers, Cable 14's senior broadcast manager, said the station received emails from Ontario PC party spokesperson Alexandra Hilkene, who up until the election was called was press secretary to Minister of Health and Deputy Premier Christine Elliott, declining Bennink and Lumsden's participation on their behalf.

The Ontario PC party did not respond to emailed questions from The Hamilton Spectator.

At a campaign announcement Wednesday morning on Hamilton's industrial bayfront, Leader Doug Ford did not directly answer a question about if the Ontario PC party had decided some candidates should not participate in local riding debates and, if so, why.

I can't speak for every single candidate because we do have candidates out there and doing debates," Ford said. But I'll tell you our main message ... (voters) are going to have a choice on June 2 - either vote for the parties that are saying no to everything, or vote for the PCs that are saying yes."

Two Green Party candidates have also declined to take part in their debates. Mario Portak in Flamborough-Glanbrook and Cassie Wylie in Hamilton East-Stoney Creek told Cable 14 they were not available to participate. Janet Errygers, running for the Green Party in Hamilton Mountain, has not responded to debate invitations.

The three Green Party candidates did not respond to Hamilton Spectator questions about not participating in their debates.

Last week, three of four Niagara-area Progressive Conservative candidates were no-shows at their local TV station debates. Only Niagara West incumbent Sam Oosterhoff said he'd take part in the debate.

The Ontario PCs did this in the last election, said Henry Jacek, a professor emeritus of political science at McMaster University. Essentially, party organizers are afraid of candidates saying things that are contrary to the PC's public policies, he suggested. More importantly, (they're afraid of) things that would be very embarrassing to the PCs."

It often works when candidates or even leaders are just not saying anything, Jacek said. For the most part, voters generally ignore this, he said. But it goes against democracy where you're supposed to be debating the issues."

The PC party figures it has got more to lose if it lets their local candidates say what they want to say."

Paul Morse is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him at pmorse@thespec.com