Liberals also used robocalls in Guelph

A recording has surfaced showing the Conservatives were not the only party to utilize robocalls in the Guelph riding during the last federal election.

Liberal MP Franki Valeriote’s campaign used an auto-dialed phone message to tell voters in his riding that the Conservative candidate opposed abortion. The call was recorded by a campaign volunteer who used a fake name because she feared retribution from anti-abortion activists.

The message encouraged people to vote strategically to “protect our hard-earned rights from the Conservatives” as the race is very close.

Valeriote says the call was issue based and not about suppressing votes. He says he spoke with Elections Canada and it confirmed the calls complied with election law.

This comes after it was discovered fraudulent robocalls were made in the riding claiming to be on behalf of Elections Canada that tried to redirect people to the wrong polling station during the federal election.