The Liberals have dropped Rod Loyola as an Edmonton-area candidate in the federal election race, the latest dismissed from party ranks since the campaign began.
In a statement to CBC News Friday, party officials confirmed that Loyola is out of the running.
“Mr. Loyola is no longer our candidate for Edmonton Gateway,” a party spokesperson said in the emailed statement.
The party did not comment on its reasons for parting ways with Loyola.
The party’s decision to drop him as a candidate comes after the National Post reported they had found a video from 2009 in which he appears to be praising Hezbollah and Hamas at an anti-NATO protest. Both are listed as terrorist groups in Canada.
In a written statement, Loyola acknowledged his comments in the video and condemned the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.
“I did not think that an intro at a hip-hop segment 16 years later would get me ‘cancelled’ after close to a decade of serving as an elected representative at the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, but here we are,” Loyola said.
“I want to be clear: I unequivocally condemn brutal killings, terrorism, and abduction — whoever does it.
“What was perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 was completely unacceptable and heart breaking — the loss of innocent life irrespective of race, faith or creed is a loss to humanity.”
Loyola said he plans to run as an independent candidate in the riding of Edmonton-Southeast, where he originally wanted to run.
In a subsequent interview with CBC News, Loyola said the Liberal Party was aware of his views on how Israel has treated the Palestinian people when they approached him to run.
“I gave them full disclosure on my stance on Palestine and that I am a person who is going to fight for the rights of Palestinians always,” Loyola said.
“I fully disclosed that to the party and I had no idea that this video existed. I’m going to continue speaking up for Palestine.”
Loyola said he was told the Liberals are a big tent party where his stance would be respected even though some may not agree with him.
Edmonton rally
The video, posted to YouTube 15 years ago, shows Loyola and a band mate during a performance on the steps of Edmonton’s Churchill Square during what was described as a “Say no to NATO” rally.
Loyola is known for social activism and, before his time in the legislature, performed as a rapper under the name Rosouljah with a group known as the People’s Poets.
As the set begins, Loyola thanks the crowd and speaks about music, poetry and building a counter culture to stop the spread of hate and war across the world.
“Organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas really are trying to stand up for their people and that needs to be recognized,” Loyola tells the crowd.
“These are movements for national liberation. Not terrorists.”
His time campaigning under the Liberal banner was brief. Loyola, a longtime Alberta NDP MLA, formally announced his campaign in the newly formed Edmonton Gateway riding nine days ago and held his formal launch party on Saturday.
Loyola recently resigned his seat in the Alberta legislature to run in Edmonton Gateway to run for the Liberals.
He was first elected in 2015, and won his third term representing the provincial riding of Edmonton-Ellerslie two years ago. Loyola’s resignation from the Alberta legislature took effect in late March and will trigger a byelection.
Party officials have not commented on their plans to find a replacement for Loyola.
He is the latest candidate to be booted from the Liberal Party’s roster, with less than a month to go before Canadians head to the polls.
During a news conference Friday morning, Liberal Leader Mark Carney confirmed that Loyola is no longer a candidate.
He told reporters, in French, that he believes that the party’s vetting process is, in general, adequately robust.
He said, however, if there was any problems with the process, they have already been addressed by the party.
The party cut ties with Thomas Keeper in Calgary-Confederation last week over his failure to disclose a stayed domestic assault charge from 2005.
Court records show that Keeper was charged with common assault on June 6, 2005. The complainant was Keeper’s wife at the time, according to divorce records.
Toronto-area Liberal incumbent Paul Chiang withdrew from the Liberal race after he faced controversy for suggesting people turn in a Conservative candidate running in a nearby riding to the Chinese consulate to collect a bounty.
Prior to the writ being dropped, the Liberals also announced Nepean MP Chandra Arya wouldn’t be permitted to run for the seat again.
The Conservatives have also dropped a number of candidates since the race began.
Don Patel, who was campaigning for the Tories in Etobicoke North, is out of the running after engaging with a comment on social media that suggested that some people should be deported to India and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should “take care” of them.
Mark McKenzie in southwestern Ontario was ousted over what the party described as “unacceptable” comments and Stefan Marquis in Montreal was dropped after he shared conspiracy theories on social media.
The Conservatives also recently revoked the candidacy of Lourence Singh in New Westminster-Burnaby-Maillardville.
According to Elections Canada rules, political parties have until April 7 to find a new person to place on the ballot.
