Nicola Di Iorio, a lawyer who is the main nominee for the Liberal nomination in St-Leonard, is embraced by the Italian community in the St-Leonard borough of Montreal, May 11, 2015. His opponent has accused him of giving out free membership cards.Christinne Muschi/The Globe and Mail
A candidate for the Liberal nomination in Montreal's Little Italy is alleging that a rival's campaign gave away membership cards.
Domenic Cusmano, who is the underdog in the nomination battle in St-Léonard-St-Michel, said he has received first-hand reports that supporters of his opponent, labour lawyer Nicola Di Iorio, gave out memberships.
Mr. Cusmano has filed a complaint to the Liberal Party, which requires members to pay their own dues to prevent deep-pocketed candidates from using their resources to sign up large numbers to vote for them in the nomination race.
"It has come to my attention, from contacting new voting members in St-Leonard-St-Michel for the June 11 nomination meeting, that many did not pay the $10 membership fee 'from their own funds,' as required by the rules of the Liberal Party of Canada," Mr. Cusmano said in the complaint sent to the party on Monday.
Reached by The Globe and Mail, some newly signed Liberal members said they recently were approached in their condo building and asked to join the party. They said they were told they did not have to pay $10.
"To be honest, I wanted to pay, but they told me I didn't have to," Tomasso Di Paola said.
Mr. Di Paola is one of about 60 new Liberal members who live in the same condo building in the riding. Another, Josette Barbeau, said she remembers filling out and signing a Liberal membership form last month, but added: "I did not pay for that."
One resident said she was given a briefing on Mr. Di Iorio and his career when she signed up.
In a statement, Mr. Di Iorio's campaign said it had not seen the complaint.
"What we do know is that we took all necessary measures to conform to the rules that govern nominations. We hope that Mr. Cusmano did the same," the statement said.
Mr. Cusmano said he is convinced his team did not sign up the new members who did not pay.
"I can only conclude that they were signed by the other nomination candidate, Mr. Nicola Di Iorio and members of his team," Mr. Cusmano said in his complaint.
In an interview, Mr. Cusmano acknowledged his complaint is a long shot. He said Mr. Di Iorio's campaign signed up at least twice as many members as his did, and that invalidating a few memberships likely would not affect the outcome on June 11.
"I don't know that anything will come of this," Mr. Cusmano said. "For now, we're working to convert and sway as many members [signed up by Mr. Di Iorio's team] as we can."
Mr. Di Iorio has run a highly organized campaign to obtain the nomination, starting with his official launch at a well-attended cocktail party at the Leonardo Da Vinci Centre in the heart of the city's Italian community last month. He has received the endorsement of Joey Saputo, a well-known businessman who is the president of the Italian-Canadian Community Foundation.
Mr. Di Iorio has hired a full campaign team, led by political organizer Mario Lapointe. In 2009, Mr. Lapointe pleaded guilty to five violations of the Election Act during a by-election in Quebec, acknowledging that he submitted a false return of election expenses and two falsified invoices, according to the province's chief electoral officer.
In an interview, the Liberal Party's top organizer in Quebec, Pablo Rodriguez, said the Liberal Party takes all complaints of wrongdoing in nomination races "very seriously," and will investigate the matter raised by Mr. Cusmano.
Mr. Di Iorio, an expert in labour law, came to public attention when tragedy struck his family. In 2010, his daughter was a passenger in a car driven by someone who had been drinking that rammed into a tree. She was in a coma for a month.
Mr. Di Iorio participated in the launch of Cool Taxi coupons, which can be used to get a cab after a night out. The idea proved especially popular among parents, who feel less anxious when their children have them in their wallets.
Mr. Cusmano, a communications consultant, has campaigned by pointing out that he has deep roots in the riding, unlike Mr. Di Iorio, who lives elsewhere in Montreal.