Jacques Boissinot/THE CANADIAN PRESS Maxime Bernier, leader of the People's Party of Canada, gives the thumbs up at the end of his speech at the launch of his campaign on Aug. 25, 2019 in Sainte-Marie, Que.

OTTAWA — A People’s Party of Canada candidate withdrew Monday in Nova Scotia, saying there are divisive and dangerous elements in the party and he doesn’t want to be a part of it. Chad Hudson withdrew his candidacy in West Nova just hours before Elections Canada’s deadline for parties to register candidates for the Oct. 21 federal vote, meaning the party will likely fall at least one riding short of its goal of running a full slate. Hudson informed Elections Canada on Monday morning but didn’t speak to the party, simply posting a brief statement on Twitter. Hudson, who works in the tourism sector, said he wrestled with his decision, but that it came after a “steady drip” of troubling stories and actions from the party and its leader Maxime Bernier.

Please find attached my statement as to why I am no longer standing as a candidate for the #PPC in #WestNova. #cdnpoli#elxn43pic.twitter.com/exMGn8T2Re — Chad Hudson (@ChadAllenHudson) September 30, 2019

“(Bernier) has tapped into something very dark and that is very dangerous in this country,” Hudson said in an interview. The party’s executive director did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Among the incidents that Hudson said caused him to withdraw was when Bernier called teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg “mentally unstable” on Twitter. Bernier later walked that back, but Hudson said it showed either that Bernier has poor judgment or that he is listening to “dangerous people” in his inner circle. “I may not agree with some of her doom-and-gloom predictions ... but she’s a very inspiring young woman,” Hudson said. “People with disabilities are not targets,” he said, referring to her Asperger’s syndrome. “Children are not targets.” Watch: 5 Things To Know About Maxime Bernier, The People’s Party Of Canada Leader. Story continues below.

Though Bernier has said he rejects climate change “alarmism,” Hudson believes that man-made climate change is real. He was willing to set aside those differences because of his support for the People’s Party’s economic proposals, such as abolishing corporate welfare. Hudson said he was also troubled after Bernier stood by a candidate who made racist and transphobic comments for which he later apologized, and after news reports revealed that the former leader of an American neo-Nazi group was among the party’s founding members. “Initially I was really hoping that we could have a new party that could offer people fresh ideas and different perspectives from the establishment parties — something that is going to offer up actual solutions,” Hudson said. “All of that is outweighed by this other racist garbage, for lack of a better term, that’s going on in the back of the store. I can’t be a part of that and I have to do my part to call it out.”

(Bernier) has tapped into something very dark and that is very dangerous in this country. Chad Hudson, former People's Party of Canada candidate