Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has one messy nomination battle on his hands. His challenge is to act fast to prevent the problem that flared up Trinity-Spadina from spreading.

Without consulting the riding executive or grass-roots Liberals, his campaign team notified would-be candidate Christine Innes that she would not be eligible to represent the party in the 2015 election. She was the Liberal candidate in Trinity-Spadina in both 2008 and 2011. But this time, according to David McNaughton, Ontario co-chair the party’s election readiness committee, her campaign team’s “bullying and intimidation” of volunteers and her refusal to run in the riding selected by the party, barred her from seeking Liberal nomination.

The specifics are complicated. The riding will be redistributed out of existence in the 2015 election and Innes’s husband, former Liberal MP Tony Ianno, has a reputation for bulldozing rivals out of the way.

But the ethical issue is clear. Trudeau pledged an “open nomination process.” Less than a year later, his operatives have blocked a candidate from seeking a nomination.

The decision has already cost him one promising candidate. Zach Paikin, a young Liberal activist, has withdrawn from the nomination race in Hamilton West-Ancaster. “I decided I could not, in good conscience, campaign to be part of the team of candidates if other seeking to join that team were prevented from doing so.”

Others may follow suit if Trudeau fails to address the sense of betrayal in the ranks. He paid a quiet visit to Trinity-Spadina last week to douse the flames. But he needs a concrete plan to assure Liberals the bad old days of backroom interference in local nominations are gone.

Priority number one is better communication with the folks on the ground. Trudeau should have at least discussed his concerns with the riding association before issuing a non-negotiable directive. He should have come to the riding before, not after, the decision was made. And he should have made it clear to other would-be candidates that, under certain circumstances, he will use his prerogative to nip internecine conflicts in the bud.

Priority number two is to clarify what he meant by “open nomination process.” Clearly it is not the hands-off stance many Liberals assumed. At minimum, he should review and sign any letter that goes out informing an aspiring candidate that he or she will not receive his approval. To fully restore the confidence of fellow Liberals, he needs to spell out when and why he will veto a candidacy.

Trudeau made a sweeping promise. Many Liberals think he has broken it. It’s imperative to clear the air.

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