Inappropriate for OPCCA to endorse a candidate in PC Leadership Race

From http://www.campuspc.ca/about_us.html

With students moving from riding to riding for school and work terms, their campus club can become the best way for them to maintain a connection to the Ontario PC Party. The Ontario Campus PCs is the organization that helps all of these clubs run by providing them with materials, speakers, and other assistance.

We organize specials events across the province ranging from catching a taping of the Royal Canadian Air Farce, which we did last November, meeting with MPPs and other special guests, Ontario Model Parliament, and just going for dinner and / or drinks with fellow PC Youth.

Joining also gives you a lot of say within the Ontario PC Party and the ability to participate in things such as developing its policies and election platforms. Many of the Campus PC clubs are joint clubs with the Conservative Party of Canada and joining OPCCA will also allow you to get more involved at the federal level if you wish to do so.

Whether you are a committed Progressive Conservative or just curious about politics, the Ontario Campus PCs is a great place for you and a great place to meet like minded people.

On May 3, the executive of the Ontario PC Campus Association decided to speak on behalf of every single one of their members by endorsing a candidate in this race. I think the decision was highly inappropriate and goes directly against the mandate of the organization. To me this is not about them endorsing Tim Hudak. Tim is a strong candidate who has appealed to many young Conservatives in this race.

My issue is that how can this organization now be seen as credible or neutral? If Christine Elliott, Randy Hillier or Frank Klees want to speak to a campus in Ontario, why would they go through the OPCCA when it has already declared a bias? Will they look to a friendly student individual student or simply go through one of the Profs? My fear is that other candidates will be less likely to deal with the OPCCA because of this endorsement and as a result their membership will be at a disadvantage because potentially they will not hear from all candidates in an equal and fair manner. As a result they have failed with their mandate.

I would also be curious to know what gives the executive the right to speak for everyone. What kind of polling could they produce to justify this endorsement? How many University or College clubs support this resolution? If the University of Windsor PC campus club for example was to back a different candidate what would it mean for the parent organization? Could individual clubs endorse their own candidate? This will cause a mess and will likely cause more harm to the OPCCA than help to the Hudak campaign.

The OPCCA has a mandate to promote our party and ideas to University and College campuses in Ontario. They should promote all candidates, our policies and ensure students get engaged in the leadership race. They should resist pressure from all candidates to take a position.

At this point, I don' think there is any point retracting the endorsement and I don't have a problem with Tim accepting it. Having said that, I think the OPCCA did their membership a disservice with this endorsement and I hope it does not result in students at various campuses having less of an opportunity to hear from all candidates.

I bring attention to an open letter to members of the OPCYA written by Brayden Akers that I think is the appropriate way for an organization affiliated with the Ontario PC Party to handle this leadership race. I hope the OPCYA takes this letter seriously and avoids making the same mistake that OPCCA made by expressing a bias in this race to the detriment of their organization.
-Darryl

OPCCA Endorses Tim Hudak for Leader of the Ontario PC Party

FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION May 3, 2009


OPCCA ENDORSES TIM HUDAK FOR ONTARIO PC PARTY LEADER

OTTAWA, ON- At its last executive meeting on May 2nd, the Ontario PC Campus Association (OPCCA) endorsed Tim Hudak to be the next leader of the PC Party of Ontario.

While there are several notable candidates in the field, OPCCA believes that Tim Hudak is best positioned to provide unifying and dynamic leadership for the Ontario PC party, in order to be ready to fight Dalton McGuinty in the 2011 election.

“I am pleased to announce that OPCCA is endorsing Tim Hudak to be the next leader of our party. Tim Hudak, more than any other candidate, has reached out to the youth of the party in support of our organization and its initiatives.” said Eric Merkley, OPCCA President.

OPCCA also strongly believes in Tim Hudak’s vision for the party; to provide strong and principled small “c” conservatism as a clear alternative to McGuinty’s Liberals. Our party is at its best when it speaks to the hopes and aspirations of middle class families in Ontario, and OPCCA considers Tim Hudak as the best candidate to unite the Ontario PC party behind these shared values.

“Without a doubt, Tim Hudak is the best candidate suited to unite our party against Dalton McGuinty with a solid conservative vision.” added President Merkley. “Tim’s campaign is also on the forefront of online innovation, showing that he understands how to reach out to the next generation, which is essential for the long-term strength of our party.”

To learn more about Tim Hudak, visit www.timhudak.ca

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Open letter to the OPCYA from President Brayden Akers

Due to the recent amount of emails and phone calls I have received about the Ontario PC Campus Association’s decision to endorse a leadership candidate and enquiring if the Ontario PC Youth Association will be taking a similar route and also endorsing a leadership candidate, there is a need to communicate with you, the members of the Ontario PC Youth Association, my current position on this issue.

At our next executive meeting, I will be discouraging the Ontario PC Youth Association Executive from endorsing any candidate for the Leadership of the Ontario PC Party. I have decided to take this stand for a variety of reasons, despite the obvious pressures on me and members organization’s executive.

I will remind the Ontario PC Youth Association’s Executive not to pretend or attempt to speak on behalf of its membership (which includes Members of its subsidiary organization, the Ontario PC Campus Association) due to the variety of opinions on this issue and the impossibility of unanimous position among the membership. I will also remind my executive the importance of this process to remain fair and democratic, and we as an executive should not dictate to our membership for whom they should vote for.

I also recognize the responsibility of all Associations of the Party (Ontario PC Youth Association, Ontario PC Business Club, Ontario PC Women’s Association and Ontario PC Campus Association) to work with whoever becomes leader of the PC Party of Ontario. Compromising our relationship with the next leader would be irresponsible to our membership.

I encourage all Young Progressive Conservatives of Ontario to become involved in any leadership campaign and this important process that will determine the future direction of our party. I have also encouraged all members of my executive to become involved in any leadership campaign and endorse leadership candidates as individuals.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Brayden Akers
President
Ontario PC Youth Association
opcya@ontariopc.net
613-668-2991