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“The circumstances surrounding Tim’s disqualification are similar to the other candidates,” Kreger-Smith said in an email.

“Tim does plan to seek relief in the courts and feels he’s got a strong case for that being granted, and we’ll happily be available to make further comment following those cases being resolved.”

For failing to file his paperwork on time, Meech will face a similar five-year ban from running, which would essentially keep him off the ballot for the next two elections under Alberta’s four-year fixed election law.

Drew Westwater, Alberta’s deputy chief electoral officer, said nominees, whether they win or lose, are given four months from the nomination contest to file their financial reports with Elections Alberta or face sanctions.

And when violations under the rules are discovered, the agency reports them immediately, he said.

“As we’re catching them, we’re reporting them,” Westwater said, noting it’s possible more could come to light prior to the writ being dropped on a spring election.

Meech didn’t respond to a request for comment from Postmedia on Wednesday, but decried the punishment faced by his fellow candidates in a story posted last week by High River Online.

“It is important to file paperwork on time. It is important to get these things done. But at the same time, you know, the punishment needs to fit the crime,” he told the news outlet.

“This is something that was a slight piece of paper that needed to go in, and to have your charter rights as a Canadian violated by not being able to run as a candidate in an election for five years seems a bit disproportionate, I think.”

Reached on Wednesday, Mandel said Meech’s circumstances are somewhat different than the party’s other banned candidates, claiming he didn’t get the proper correspondence from Elections Alberta, something the agency couldn’t verify. However, Meech will still have to go through the same court process as the others, he added.

Mandel said the party will begin their challenge of the province’s filing rules on Friday in an Edmonton courtroom.

slogan@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @ShawnLogan403