Liberal leadership contenders not required to disclose campaign contributions

Patrick Butler · Radio-Canada

· Posted: Mar 08, 2025 4:30 AM EST | Last Updated: March 8

Both candidates successful the contention for the Newfoundland and Labrador Liberal Party enactment — a contention that volition automatically elite the province's adjacent premier — promised this week they'll marque each their run donations and expenses public.

But neither John Abbott nor John Hogan are really required to bash truthful nether the contest's rules — and the timing and quality of the disclosure is inactive wholly up to them, acknowledgment to a loophole successful the province's elections law.

During provincial elections and byelections successful Newfoundland and Labrador, candidates and parties look strict rules connected run spending and indispensable publically disclose donations they person and the names of donors.

However, the aforesaid requirements don't use to enactment enactment races, contempt much than 20 years of promises from Liberal and Progressive Conservative leaders to tighten up the rules.

While parties person their ain interior reporting processes during enactment races, candidates determine themselves whether and erstwhile to marque donations public.

PC promises

In 2003, PC person Danny Williams, past person of the opposition, pledged to bring successful caller authorities and necessitate that enactment candidates publically disclose each donations received during their campaigns. He besides promised to headdress donations during enactment races and bring successful a ceiling for candidates' spending.

A small much than a twelvemonth before, Roger Grimes had won a Liberal enactment contention plagued by accusations of backroom deals.  

"These are precise superior issues that are eroding the people's assurance successful government," Williams said astatine the time, suggesting the existent rules — or deficiency thereof — allowed for "blatant abuses of office," arsenic good arsenic "questions of run contributions and suggestions of impropriety during enactment conventions."

The PCs swept to powerfulness a fewer months later in November 2003. But during the party's 12 years successful government, it ne'er required candidates to publically disclose enactment contributions.

Liberal promises

Ten years aft Williams's promise, recently elected Liberal person Dwight Ball's "secret" run spending came nether the microscope. In 2013, portion inactive absorption leader, Ball promised "open and accountable" authorities and revealed of his ain accord the $313,000 successful donations he'd received during the race.

Ball besides recommended the Liberal Party enforcement alteration its rules to marque nationalist reporting of run contributions mandatory for each aboriginal enactment races.

"Full disclosure connected governmental contributions is intelligibly the lone mode to beryllium genuinely unfastened and transparent," Ball told CBC News astatine the time.

But, erstwhile again, the promised changes were ne'er made.

In 2020, erstwhile the Liberals launched a enactment contention to prime Ball's successor, the enactment said it was up to candidates to determine whether to marque their donations and expenses public.

"We would inquire that the candidates see astatine the extremity of their run erstwhile they get their audits done that they beryllium unfastened and marque that available", said then-party president John Allan astatine the time.

Possible Ball precedent, but disclosure inactive not mandatory

Ball's 2013 disclosure seems, however, to person acceptable a precedent for Liberal enactment hopefuls.

After the 2020 race, some candidates — Abbott and existent Premier Andrew Furey — released the database of contributions they received and the names of donors.

Furey received astir $310,000 during the campaign, portion Abbott netted conscionable implicit $120,000.

For the existent enactment contest, whose rules became nationalist this week aft Furey's astonishment resignation connected Feb. 25, the Liberal Party acceptable a $200,000 spending headdress for candidates — a caller measurement to debar "exorbitant" spending, according to Judy Morrow, the seat of the committee overseeing the race.

However, the rules presently bash not marque the nationalist disclosure of run contributions mandatory for candidates.

"It is an interior process, immoderate we determine to do," said Morrow connected Wednesday.

"Regarding the details of the fiscal piece, we haven't worked that retired yet. In fact, we're gathering aboriginal this week and that's 1 of the items connected the agenda. We volition beryllium reviewing that with each of the candidates and their run teams arsenic soon arsenic they are greenish lit and qualified arsenic a candidate."

2023 PC race 

For the PC enactment contention that elected Tony Wakeham successful 2023, the enactment acceptable a $225,000 spending cap. It besides had akin rules to the Liberals, requiring lone the disclosure of donations and fiscal statements to an interior enactment committee overseeing the contest.

"If you would similar a transcript of Mr. Wakeham's statement, we would beryllium blessed to supply it to you promptly upon request," PC Party spokesperson Nathan Ryan wrote successful an email connected Wednesday, adding that each candidates successful the 2023 contention complied with the rules.

Radio-Canada requested a transcript of Wakeham's fiscal statements and a database of his run contributors connected Wednesday. The party, truthful far, has not shared those documents.

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