The Canadian Press
WINNIPEG—A Manitoba Liberal candidate who came under fire for using derogatory terms to refer to women on social media has resigned.
Jamie Hall was nominated as a Winnipeg-area candidate Tuesday night but immediately was asked to resign when the NDP unearthed dozens of tweets over the years in which he used terms such as “whore” and “skank.”
Hall initially apologized and defended his comments, calling them humorous and satirical.
But Liberal leader Rana Bokhari issued a statement today saying Hall has resigned.
She said she can’t accept comments that disparage women and neither can voters.
A Liberal party spokesperson had said Hall was vetted before being named a candidate, but his tweets weren’t seen.
Hall, who was nominated in the Southdale constituency, also wrote a novel in which he compared explicit sex acts by women to driving a race car.
As a bar promoter, he filmed videos promoting “sexy-ass” female bartenders.
The governing New Democrats demanded yesterday that Hall be dropped as a candidate.
“He refers to women as whores and skanks, among other terms,” said NDP Health minister Sharon Blady.
“I don’t know when there’s ever an appropriate context for the use of those words
“That’s something that should have been caught by the [Liberal] party in seeking to nominate him,” she charged.
Hall said some of the tweets were connected to the promotion of his novel.
Another tweet in which he said “feminists are so sexist” was a quote from comedian Bill Maher, he added.
“I have countless friends that are women—my girlfriend, my mother, my sister, my grandmas who are no longer with me—and I am not by any means sexist,” Hall vowed.
Hall also said the NDP should not criticize him because one of their own candidates has used similar language about women.
Author and indigenous activist Wab Kinew, who is running for the NDP in Fort Rouge, has acknowledged writing misogynistic lyrics during his career as a rapper.
Kinew has since apologized for his lyrics, both at a music awards ceremony and in his 2015 book, “The Reason You Walk.”
“With the epidemic of violence against women, and indigenous women in particular, there is no excuse for this,” Kinew wrote.
The Liberals have one legislature seat but are hoping for a breakthrough in the April 19 election.
Recent polls suggest their popularity has jumped as support for the NDP government has dropped.
