Green Party co-leader says removal from leaders’ debates is ‘undemocratic’

By Canadian Press on April 16, 2025.

OTTAWA — Green Party co-leader Jonathan Pedneault says the “last minute decision” to remove his party from the debate is “unfounded” and “undemocratic.”

Early this morning the Leaders’ Debate Commission rescinded its invitation to the Green Party to participate in the two federal leaders’ debates.

It says the decision was made because the party made a strategic decision not to run candidates in every riding after initially telling the commission it would.

Speaking in Montreal, Pedneault says that decision comes seven days after the final candidate list was published by Elections Canada.

He says his party received a letter from the commission around 7:20 a.m. EDT today.

The decision comes just hours before the French language debate is scheduled to take place in Montreal and one day before the English debate.

Pedneault did not take questions at the press conference.

In order to participate in the debates, parties must meet two of three conditions.

They must have had one seat in the House of Commons, have at least four per cent national support 28 days before the election, or have endorsed candidates in at least 90 per cent of ridings 28 days before the election.

By the deadline set by the debate commission, the Green Party was polling at less than three per cent, and while it included a full list of candidate endorsements by the deadline, the party only has 232 candidates now running.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 16, 2025.

The Canadian Press