The candidate in Outremont of the Coderre team, Dan Kraft, is withdrawing from the campaign. The aspiring advisor, who apologized in early October for sharing content questioning climate change and discrimination against blacks, said he was the victim of a “smear campaign”.
“Mr. Kraft is a university professor. The transition from academia, where debate and the exchange of ideas are at the heart of everyday life, to the political world is not easy. In politics, there is less interpretation and nuance. Dan learned it at his expense and that of his relatives, ”explained mayoral candidate Denis Coderre on the sidelines of a press conference Tuesday morning.
He at the same time revealed that the choice to withdraw came from the candidate himself, indicating that the latter “announced to me that he and his family no longer resist the smear campaign”. ” There are trolls who play with that, and we know that it comes from people from other parties, ”also accused Mr. Coderre, in English, suggesting that this affair will not help in any way to attract more people to municipal politics.
Mr. Kraft’s problematic posts, which came to light a few weeks ago, were aimed in particular at sharing the video in 2019. The Great Global Warning Swindle (The big global warming scam).
In 2020, Dan Kraft also commented on a daily publication National Post about a black man who said he was arrested for an expired license plate when she was not. He then asked that we let “the police do their job” and accused the man and “many others to seek their 15 minutes of fame”. “I learned from my mistake and made a commitment to be more careful,” Mr. Kraft assured in the process. Immediately, Ensemble Montreal had reiterated its confidence in the man, saying above all that it wanted to “turn the page”.
Immediate withdrawal
In a statement, Dan Kraft confirmed that his involvement “has always been sincere, but that [son] political adventure ends immediately because of a smear campaign in [son] place “.
“I am an activist in the fight against anti-Semitism and all types of discrimination, especially against minorities, but this is not what has been hammered out in recent weeks on social networks. As an immigrant, I can only have an open mindset towards diversity. I have been working in the field of renewable energies for over 20 years, but that too has not been disclosed, ”he says.
I want voters to understand the importance of getting involved in community life, and of not being swayed by lies and hatred. We build society every day.
Dan Kraft, candidate resigning from Ensemble Montréal
Without ever going back to his controversial remarks, Mr. Kraft admits in passing that he “neglected the alert” launched by the Union of Municipalities of Quebec (UMQ), which denounced the radicalism and the hateful nature of social networks in politics “like a way to prevent greater citizen participation, ”he says. “I deeply regret it, both for myself and for those who supported me,” he insists.
It is therefore 97 candidates from 103 districts that Ensemble Montréal will present on November 7. Projet Montréal has 103 and Mouvement Montréal has 68.
In the office of the outgoing mayor, Valérie Plante, we reacted quickly. “What Denis Coderre tells us today is that Dan Kraft’s departure is not due to his climate-skeptic and racist statements, but because he doesn’t appreciate the fact that these statements have become public thanks to to media research work. In short, it is not a question of principle, but a question of image. It is a lack of leadership and conviction that will disappoint many Montrealers, ”criticized press secretary Marikym Gaudreault in the afternoon.
Other candidates from the Coderre team have also left the campaign in recent weeks, including Joe Ortona, president of the English Montreal School Board (CESM), in the wake of the organization’s release of a document. controversial denying the existence of the Quebec nation. Lachine mayoral candidate Julie-Pascale Provost was also shown the door because she refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19.