Theresa Blackburn says the Tobique-Mactaquac federal Liberal party candidate nominating convention has turned her off federal politics. (YouTube) A woman who signed up to support the federal Liberals says she's through with federal politics after seeing the process up close.

Theresa Blackburn, a Woodstock town councillor who attended the recent Tobique-Mactaquac nominating convention, says that what she witnessed was a disappointment and she wants nothing to do with party politics.

"It leaves with you with a horrible taste in your mouth."

Blackburn attended the Nov. 1 convention to pick a federal Liberal candidate — her first-ever involvement.

She says she saw supporters of winning nominee T.J. Harvey pressure party members into voting for him.

That echoes complaints by candidate Rick Lafrance — a school teacher who Blackburn supported, and who lost the nomination race to Harvey.

Lafrance has filed a formal complaint with the Liberal party over alleged paperwork improprieties and other tactics.

"I want the good people of Tobique-Mactaquac to know what happened at that nomination," he said.

Rick Lafrance has filed a formal complaint with the federal Liberal party over rules being broken during a recent nomination convention. (Jacques Poitras/CBC) Monday was the second day Harvey didn't speak to CBC News to respond to the accusations as he'd promised.

Blackburn says the federal Liberals need to investigate the process.

"You would think that the rules would be such that people can't in any way shape or form get around them. But there are so many loopholes," she said.

At a time when parties talk about reaching out to disaffected voters to get them more involved, this episode sends the wrong message, she says.