Local residents were forced to stand outside in the cold for almost an hour last Thursday as PC Alberta opened and operated an advanced polling station at the French Cultural Centre (ACFA Hall) in Bonnyville.
Local residents were forced to stand outside in the cold for almost an hour last Thursday as PC Alberta opened and operated an advanced polling station at the French Cultural Centre (ACFA Hall) in Bonnyville.
On a night filled with controversy, hundreds of locals lined the streets of Bonnyville as they waited patiently to cast their vote in the local PC nomination process.
Amongst those, was MD of Bonnyville Reeve Ed Rondeau. After spending much of the night outside ensuring all those that turned up had the opportunity to vote, Rondeau eventually entered the poll himself, ready to cast his ballot. Unknown to him at the time however, there were already measures in place to prevent the reeve from voting.
"I was in the line up and (Carol Reynolds Wittman), the chair (of the nomination committee) singled me out, brought me (aside) and asked to talk to me," Rondeau told media on Thursday. "She said that I wasn't allowed to vote, that she had received an email and I was not a member in good standing."
Reynolds-Wittman later confirmed "there was one member in attendance not allowed to vote", a decision she claims came directly from PC Alberta.
"We had received an email prior to the advance poll (from PC Alberta) indicating one member was not allowed to vote because he wasn't a member in good standing," Reynolds-Wittman told the Nouvelle. "PC Alberta indicated to us we are to escort the member off the premises (should he arrive to cast his vote)."
Rondeau says he was the only person out of hundreds in attendance barred from voting.
"I was upset. A little perturbed," Rondeau said. "I don't really know what to say. I was shocked."
To make the situation even more confusing, the Nouvelle received a tip from a local resident that Rondeau still sat as an area representative on the local PC party's executive committee.
Ron Young, who up until two weeks ago made up a quarter of the local nominating committee, told the Nouvelle there was no way Rondeau should have been branded a member not in good standing.
"Ed (Rondeau) has been an area representative for the (local) PC party for as long as I can remember, so obviously he's a member in good standing if he is a (sitting) member of the Bonnyville - Cold Lake PC association (executive)," Young said. "If he wasn't in good standing, he couldn't be an area representative on that executive."
President of the Bonnyville - Cold Lake PC Association Bob Buckle could neither confirm nor deny whether or not Rondeau currently sits as a member of the executive, but he did point out he has "never" seen the reeve at a constituency meeting.
That situation was far from the only controversy that night, as local RCMP was called in to remove an intoxicated individual the local nominating committee claims was being "unruly and disruptive".
"We had an incident with an unruly, disrespectful individual who was intoxicated at the scene making threatening comments about starting a disruptive riot type activity," Reynolds-Wittman said. "As the person in charge of the event, I was advised to call RCMP."
When contacted by media, Bonnyville RCMP said there was no intoxicated man on the premises.
"Police were called to the polling station with reports of an intoxicated male," local RCMP said. "It was determined that it was a false allegation."
No one was arrested as a result of the call and police confirmed they would not be pursuing any charges.
Standing outside when RCMP initially arrived on the scene, MD of Bonnyville Coun. Mike Krywiak claimed he was the individual police had been called in to remove.
Krywiak told media after casting his ballot, he had asked to use one of the facility washrooms. The MD of Bonnyville Coun. was immediately asked to leave the premises by local and provincial PC representatives.
"This entire process has been a joke," Krywiak said.
Many locals took to social media to voice their concerns over the way the local committee handled the polling station, but according to a press release Reynolds-Wittman sent out following the poll, the advanced poll was a "great success".
"We had some really good numbers (at the poll in Bonnyville) - a lot of people came out to cast their ballot," Reynolds-Wittman told the Nouvelle. "Some people had to wait in line a little longer than we would have liked, but every PC member in good standing cast their ballots by 7:30."
She added, "The night was a huge success."
Following Saturday's poll in Cold Lake, Craig Copeland emerged victorious over fellow candidate Dixie Dahlstedt, winning the public vote 663 to 591.
