WINNIPEG — A Manitoba Liberal candidate who was criticized for using derogatory terms to refer to women on social media has resigned.
Jamie Hall was nominated as a Winnipeg-area candidate Tuesday night. Less than 24 hours later, the NDP demanded his resignation after unearthing dozens of tweets over the years in which Hall used terms such as "whore" and "skank."
Hall initially apologized but also defended his comments by calling them humorous and satirical.
Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari didn't weigh in until Thursday when she issued a statement saying Hall is no longer carrying the party's banner.
"Jamie Hall has apologized to me and the party and I have accepted his apology. He has also offered his resignation from candidacy in Southdale and I have accepted his resignation," she said in the emailed statement.
"As a woman I simply cannot accept comments that disparage women. Manitobans have every right to expect and demand a high standard of their candidates and MLAs."
Hall's tweets, dating back several years, repeatedly referred to women in derogatory terms. In one tweet, Hall asked whether a whore can truly be a whore if no one hears her scream. Another said: "You can put glasses on a whore but you can't put a whore on glasses."
Still another said: "I am prejudicial against women politicians" in reference to former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin and Republican politician Michele Bachmann.
As a bar promoter, he filmed videos promoting "sexy-ass" female bartenders. Hall also wrote a novel in which he compared explicit sex acts by women to driving a race car. He said some of the tweets were connected to the promotion of his novel, although the novel was not mentioned in the posts.
Another tweet in which he said "feminists are so sexist" was a quote from comedian Bill Maher, he said.
A Liberal party spokesperson had said Hall was vetted before being named a candidate, but his tweets weren't seen.
The Liberals have one seat in the legislature going into the April 19 election. Polls show they are in a dead heat with the governing NDP at around 20 per cent support.
