By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-04-01 20:31:15 | Updated at 2025-04-02 23:27:54
1 day ago
A Chinese-Canadian member of parliament at the centre of a foreign interference controversy has decided to drop out ahead of high-stakes national elections this month, after his former party chose not to nominate him.
Han Dong, previously an MP for the governing Liberal Party, resigned from the party in 2023 after a news report alleged that he advised the Chinese consulate in Toronto in 2021 to delay the release of two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, then being held in China.
Dong, who denied the report, continued to serve as an independent after leaving the party, but told the Toronto Star in January that he hoped to run again under the Liberal Party banner.
Over the weekend, though, he learned that the party would run a new candidate – Maggie Chi – in his Don Valley North riding in Toronto for the federal election on April 28.
The Liberal Party of Canada did not immediately respond to a query about why they opted for Chi over Dong.
In a statement on Sunday, Dong said he was disappointed but would exit the race “to give the [Liberal Party of Canada] the best chance to form a government and protect us from the threats posed by Donald Trump”.
