DRAYTON VALLEY, Alta. - An Alberta legislature member who gained national notoriety for saying former MP Belinda Stronach was "whoring herself out of power" when she switched federal parties has lost the Tory nomination in his home constituency.
Rev. Tony Abbott made headlines two years ago when he baldly criticized Stronach for jumping from the Conservatives to join the Liberal cabinet, helping to save Paul Martin's government from losing an impending non-confidence vote.
Abbott, who was once a senior pastor at an evangelical church, later apologized for his remarks, but now says he has no regrets about denouncing Stronach's decision.
"What I said about Belinda I still stand behind," Abbott said Monday in an interview. "I did apologize for the way it came out, but I do not believe that it's right for (elected members) to cross the floor."
Abbott lost to Diana McQueen, who was recently acclaimed for a second term as mayor of Drayton Valley, Alta., and plans to remain in the mayor's job until a provincial election is called.
The Tory backbencher says he's investigating the nomination vote and may contest the results if there's any indication of unfairness.
"We have to find out if the nomination was run fair, so I have some of my people investigating," he said. "We're going to decide this week if we're going to file for an arbitration or not."
Abbott was elected twice in the constituency of Drayton Valley-Calmar and has served more than six years as a government member
He says he may consider running for another right-wing party.
"Of course I would never cross the floor. That's something that I do not believe in. I would perhaps sit as an Independent for a while and then when the writ is dropped, run under another banner."
