Nov 12, 2022 • 11 hours ago • 2 min read • 16 comments Nadine Wellwood is seen in this 2019 file photo. She was previously a candidate for the People’s Party of Canada in the riding of Banff-Airdrie. Photo by Submitted /SunMedia

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A former People’s Party of Canada candidate has rejected her appeal to be the UCP’s candidate, the provincial party confirmed Saturday.

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Nadine Wellwood said last week that she had been barred by the UCP from running in the Livingstone-MacLeod riding because of past social media posts she had made and that she planned to appeal that decision. UCP spokesman Dave Prisco told Postmedia on Saturday that the appeal has been dismissed. Sign up to receive daily news headlines from the Calgary Herald, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. By clicking the subscribe button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

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Prisco declined to provide further comment on the rationale for this dismissal. Wellwood did not respond to requests for comment Saturday. She issued a statement Friday saying she had support from the local candidate nominating committee and that she had received messages telling her to stand by her principles and not apologize for having strong opinions. “The provincial electoral commission is said to have raised concern about some previous social media posts,” Wellwood said in a post on its website. “I can’t change past events, but I’ve made a point to provide more context when commenting or sharing information in the future, as many of these tweets were as simple as a like or retweet.”

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Wellwood has previously compared public health requirements and vaccine mandates to Nazi Germany and has made numerous posts spreading misinformation about COVID-19. He has also made posts suggesting that the Western world should “stop escalating” the war in Ukraine and work to broker peace. The party has not confirmed that Wellwood’s posts were the reason for her ban. David Parker, founder of Take Back Alberta, a group that promotes civil liberties, grassroots populist movements, opposes public health measures for COVID-19 and actively supported the removal of former premier Jason Kenney, said he believes the decision to to refuse Wellwood’s nomination is “Absolutely Legal”. “I have a very low opinion of her as a person, so in that context, I think it was entirely fair that she was voted out,” Parker said. “I think some of the things he said are pure Russian propaganda, which is unacceptable.”

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A slate of candidates who openly supported Take Back Alberta were elected to the UCP board during the party’s General Assembly in October. Parker said while Take Back Alberta promotes freedom, freedom does not mean freedom from consequences. Moving forward he said there are a lot of people associated with Take Back Alberta who are interested in running in the riding. Current Livingstone-MacLeod MP Roger Reid has announced he will not be standing in next year’s general election. When Premier Danielle Smith first announced her intention to return to politics, she said she would seek the UCP nomination for the riding. Reid did not indicate his intention to vacate his position for Smith at the time. Smith won the UCP leadership race before running and winning a second election in the southeast riding of Brooks-Medicine Hat. Smith’s office said Saturday she would leave internal party matters to the party. “The UCP has a process for dealing with internal party work and we will leave party matters to them,” the prime minister’s office said in an email. [email protected]ia.com

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