Conservative party delegates reject motion to bar permanent residents from nomination votes

CALGARY — Conservative Party delegates have voted down a constitutional amendment that would have restricted party membership to Canadian citizens, leaving existing rules in place that allow permanent residents to vote in Conservative nomination contests.The proposal known as C-9 was introduced during the Tory convention’s constitutional review session in Calgary on Friday by the Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek electoral district association.It sought to amend Article 4.1 of the party’s constitution to require Canadian citizenship for party membership, removing language that currently permits permanent residents to join.Under the party’s existing rules, permanent residents — including those as young as 14 — may become members if they meet age, fee, and loyalty requirements.While only party members are eligible to vote in nomination races, this means non-citizens are currently allowed to vote in the selection of Conservative candidates, despite being barred from voting in federal elections.Supporters of the amendment argued the change was necessary to align party rules with Canada’s electoral system..UPDATED: Conservative convention kicks off in Calgary as Poilievre leadership review looms.Josh Boyes from Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek stated that “the citizenship status required to vote in a Canadian election should be our party’s citizenship standard.”“This is a necessary change to our constitution because foreign interference is a real threat," he said."Enemies of our country can and have used their diasporas in Canada to manipulate elections in other parties. We must protect our party.”Henry Chan, a delegate from Saskatoon South, spoke in favour of the motion, saying it was inconsistent to allow non-citizens to influence who runs for Parliament.“People who are permanent residents are not allowed to vote in the general election,” Chan said.“So if someone who is not allowed to vote in a general election, why should they get to vote and pick the candidate? And to those who disagree, I would say: go change the rules for the general election first, because you have to be a citizen to vote in our general election.”Opponents countered that the proposal conflicted with Conservative values and risked excluding long-time supporters..Liam O’Brien, a delegate from central Newfoundland, said the party should remain open to people who share Conservative principles but have not yet obtained citizenship.“I’ve been at this for 35 years,” he said.“This is a party of freedom. The Conservative Party of Canada is for freedom, and there are people who have escaped authoritarian, communist regimes that I work with and knock on doors with who should not be excluded by gatekeeping.”Saskatoon West MP Brad Reddekopp also spoke in favour of the amendment, framing nomination races as a test of electoral viability rather than internal membership strength.“It’s great to have a candidate who can win over a bunch of supporters,” Reddekopp said.“But we don’t need to attract supporters — we need to attract voters. The purpose of a nomination race is to select the candidate who can win over the most voters.”Following debate, delegates voted to defeat the motion by a margin of 443-305.Reaction online was sharply critical of the motion being shot down.One commentator on X wrote, “I denounce the Conservative Party of Canada as a failed institution. They just voted to allow non-citizens to continue to be party members. This is a complete violation of my values, and I will never support them again as long as this policy exists.”“A conservative party letting non-citizens vote in its nominations is not conservative. If you can’t vote in Canadian elections, you shouldn’t help choose Canadian candidates,” another said.“Citizenship must mean something. Sovereignty starts there.”