Liberal Leadership candidate Andrew Furey has changed his tone on the election, calling for a pause in the campaign.
A growing number of voices, including some from within the Liberal party, began calling for the process to be put on hold while the province comes together to manage the pandemic response.
On Monday, John Abbott—who is also in the running for leadership—called for the party to suspend the race because of problems posed by the virus.
Initially, Furey stated that he would offer support should the Liberals decide to call off the leadership process for now.
However, according to a statement issued Friday afternoon, Furey states the best path forward would be to delay the process.
“…our campaign has always been committed to putting people first. I look forward to putting my head down and doing my part to get our province through this pandemic and revisiting the Leadership when the time is right.”
Earlier Story
There is mounting pressure from within the ranks of the provincial Liberal Party to call off the leadership race.
The party’s own Chief Returning Officer has resigned his neutral post to return as Vice President where he can be part of the decision making process.
Rodney Mercer says it is “disrespectful to continue with the campaign while world leaders are telling people to stop what they are doing.”
One Liberal MHA is voicing concerns about her party’s decision to proceed with the leadership race during the COVID-19 crisis.
Pam Parsons says the last thing people in her district are thinking about is electing a new leader.
Parsons says constituents have called her to express concerns about the ongoing leadership race. She told VOCM News “they are concerned that politics should take a back seat to this pandemic crisis we are dealing with.”
Earlier this week party officials decided to cancel the AGM scheduled for May, but said the online leadership vote to replace Dwight Ball would go ahead on May 9th.
Parsons, who represents Harbour Grace-Port de Grave, says now is not the time for politics.
“This is not about a candidate or Dwight Ball or anyone” Parsons says. “We don’t have time to deal with anything else but this right now – people want to know where there food is going to come from, if they are safe and how they can keep a roof above their head.”
NDP Calls for Stability, Not Leadership Conventions
The NDP is calling on all three parties to put aside leadership elections, reviews and conventions and allow MHAs to focus their energies on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
Allison Coffin says the province needs stability, not a government in transition at this challenging time.
It’s time for all three parties to put their leadership elections, reviews, and conventions on hold and allow their MHAs to focus their energies on fighting the COVID-19 crisis facing our province. Newfoundland and Labrador needs stability, not a government in transition. #nlpoli https://t.co/cun4yrx2XU
— Alison Coffin (@AlisonCoffinNDP) March 20, 2020
