OTTAWA — Liberals who helped defeat Eve Adams in her bid to run as the party’s candidate in a Toronto riding say they’ve done Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau a favour.
But a political scientist and the Conservatives say Trudeau will still face criticism in the upcoming federal election for taking the Tory defector under his wing in the first place.
Adams had sought the Liberal nomination in Eglinton-Lawrence to run against her former fellow Conservative caucus mate, Finance Minister Joe Oliver.
But Adams, who was welcomed into the Liberal fold by Trudeau in February after she had a falling out with the Tories, was defeated in a weekend nomination vote won by Marco Mendicino.
Ontario MPP Mike Colle says Trudeau should thank Mendicino supporters for ensuring that Adams didn’t win the nomination.
But University of Toronto political science professor Peter Loewen predicts Trudeau could still be shadowed by the Adams defection through the as-yet unofficial election campaign.
Already, Tory cabinet minister Jason Kenney says Trudeau should be held accountable for his bad judgment in allowing Adams to sit in the House of Commons as a Liberal.