Retiring Conservative Abbotsford MP Ed Fast has announced his endorsement of independent candidate Mike de Jong instead of the candidate for his party.

In a statement released Tuesday morning (April 15), Fast criticized the selection of 25-year-old Sukhman Gill as the Conservative candidate in the new riding of Abbotsford-South 91原创.

Gill 鈥� a blueberry farmer and political neophyte 鈥� won the riding鈥檚 nomination vote on March 8 after the federal Conservatives declined de Jong鈥檚 application to run despite his 30-year history as an MLA.

The local selection committee had declined Gill鈥檚 application while endorsing de Jong鈥檚, but both of those decisions were reversed at the national level.

De Jong was not given a reason for his candidacy being rejected and announced on March 26 that he would run as an independent in the federal election on April 28.

Fast, who is retiring from federal politics after 18 years, said Tuesday he believes de Jong is 鈥渢he only qualified candidate to provide strong leadership in these challenging times.鈥�

鈥淥ver a year ago, I asked for an open and fair process to select my successor,鈥� Fast said.

鈥淚nstead, party insiders manipulated the process to ensure their handpicked 25-year-old candidate 鈥� until recently a supporter of Justin Trudeau 鈥� was appointed. They disqualified the most qualified candidate, Mike de Jong, and ignored the will of our local Conservative association. Democracy lost out.鈥�

De Jong served under BC United (formerly the Liberals) as the Abbotsford West MLA starting in 1994 before announcing his retirement from provincial politics in February 2024.

In mid-April, he confirmed he was seeking the federal Conservative nomination for the Abbotsford-South 91原创 riding.

Fast said de Jong has a 鈥減roven track record of responsible leadership鈥� in roles such as finance minister, attorney general and health minister.

鈥淢ike has delivered balanced budgets, fought for religious freedom, and stood up for conservative values his entire career. And now, at a time of economic crisis and global uncertainty, he is the only candidate truly ready to lead on Day 1,鈥� Fast said.

He also addressed the concern of 鈥渧ote splitting,鈥� calling it a 鈥渄istraction rooted in fear 鈥� not facts.鈥�

鈥淪ome say a vote for Mike will split the vote. That鈥檚 only true if conservatives vote out of fear,鈥� he said.

鈥淚nternal polling shows the Liberals are well behind. This is a two-way race. If conservatives vote with principle, Mike wins 鈥� and so does our democracy.鈥�

De Jong posted results of his campaign鈥檚 internal polling on Tuesday morning, showing he and the Conservatives are almost tied in current voting projections at 31 and 32 per cent respectively, with the Liberals at 25 per cent.

In a written statement, de Jong said he is grateful for Fast鈥檚 endorsement.

鈥淗e leaves huge shoes to fill and, if the people of Abbotsford-South 91原创 select me to succeed him as their MP, I will do my very best to honour the legacy of integrity and principled public service he leaves,鈥� de Jong said.

The Abbotsford News has reached out to Gill for comment, but he has not been responding to media requests nor has he indicated that he will participate in the all-candidates debate on April 23 in Abbotsford.

In addition to de Jong and Sukhman, four others are seeking election in Abbotsford-South 91原创: Kevin Gillies for the Liberals, Dharmasena Yakandawela for the NDP, Melissa Snazell for the Greens, and Aeriol Alderking for the People's Party of Canada.