[
Several candidates contesting next month’s byelection in Battle River-Crowfoot have reported receiving negative and sometimes “potentially threatening commentary” on social media platforms in recent days, according to RCMP.
“While Canadians are entitled to express their opinions, even those critical of political figures, threats or comments that cross the line into criminal conduct will be taken seriously,” RCMP wrote in a statement.
Independent candidate Sarah Spanier is one of more than 150 candidates contesting the riding alongside Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre, who is running in the riding to regain a seat in the House of Commons.
But Spanier said she’s put a pause on knocking on doors for the time being, citing a barrage of hostile comments she’s received over the course of her campaign.
“I had people who were telling me that I’m going to regret it, and my family’s going to regret it,” Spanier said. “Then it slowly started to escalate into, ‘If you come here, you’re going to regret it.'”
The rhetoric got “even more aggressive,” in Spanier’s view, after she started to speak about her support of transgender people.
“The comments I received were just vile, and not exactly something that you can say on TV or radio,” she said.
Spanier shared screenshots with CBC News of various social media comments. One user posted that “[Spanier is] an ignorant pig and I pray [she gets] destroyed,” while another wrote “come to my door they will regret it.”
Another charged Spanier with attempting to “sabotage” Poilievre.
Of the more than 150 candidates running against Poilievre, most are electoral reform advocates known as the Longest Ballot Committee.