Global Courant 2023-04-20 01:52:43
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FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. – A candidate from the United Conservative Party in northern Alberta will no longer run in the provincial elections scheduled for this spring.
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Zulkifl Mujahid, who works in the automotive industry, won the nomination at Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo in December 2022.
UCP officials confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that he has been eliminated as the party’s candidate.
“Mr Mujahid has been named in legal cases that will be ongoing during the summons period. These cases arose after his appointment process,” the statement reads. “To allow him to focus on addressing these issues , Mr. Mujahid will no longer be our nominee at Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo.”
The party did not provide details on those legal matters and Mujahid was not immediately available for comment.
He is the latest in a string of UCP candidates to drop out of the race in the past month.
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Two cabinet ministers, Travis Toews and Sonya Savage, announced on March 24 that they would not be seeking re-election in Grande Prairie-Wapiti and Calgary-North West.
In late March, the UCP candidate for Lethbridge-West resigned after claiming in a video that children are exposed to pornography in schools and that teachers are helping them change their gender identity.
Tunde Obasan, who had planned to run in Edmonton-South, pulled out on April 2 for personal reasons.
New UCP candidates have since been named in each of the four constituencies.
The party said a new candidate in Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo will be appointed after consultation with local riding officials. It noted that the county board has empowered the leader to fill any vacancy that arises before the general election.
The subpoena is expected to be dropped on May 1 for an election day on May 29.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 19, 2023.
