Jodie Emery's bid to run as federal Liberal candidate turned down
Pot activist says Liberals did not give a reason for rejecting her bid
Pot activist Jodie Emery's bid to run for the Liberal Party has come to an end with the federal party rejecting her nomination to become a candidate for a Vancouver riding.
Emery tweeted she received an email from the Liberals on Friday, saying it would not recommend her to run as potential candidate in the Vancouver East riding that is currently held by Libby Davies.
"The message was really short, there was no detail ... just that upon careful consideration of my application, they've decided to not proceed," Emery said.
"They said they knew it would be a disappointment and it certainly is."
Olivier Duchesneau, a spokesperson for the Liberal Party, confirmed in an email to CBC News that Emery has not been recommended to seek nomination in Vancouver East but did not provide any reasons for the decision.
Open nomination process
Last week, Emery told CBC Vancouver host Andrew Chang that she felt the Liberals were dismissive of her candidacy.
Although the party's leader Justin Trudeau has called for open nominations in every riding, Emery said last week that's just not true.
She said the Liberals should be upfront that they have preferred candidates in some ridings — a fact that federal Liberal leader Justin Trudeau has denied in other interviews about open nominations.
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Still, Emery said she has no hard feelings and said that would continue to support the Liberals as a voter.
"I realize that my high-profile candidacy might become distracting for a riding that became hotly contested," she said.
With files from Chad Pawson
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