The Commissioner of Canada Elections is being asked to investigate possible bot farm attempts to boost Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.
The New Democrats are calling for the investigation after hundreds of posts on the social media platform X claimed to have attended Poilievre’s event last week in Kirkland Lake.
The NDP says on top of hundreds of nearly and completely identical posts, some included ‘bizarre’ claims like one post that said they “had to brave the cold” to attend the July 31 event.
The accounts claim to be from outside Ontario and Canada, namely Russia and other European nations, according to the NDP.
The New Democrats’ letter requests that Commissioner Caroline Simard investigate to ensure the Conservative Party of Canada did not engage a bot farm; or if a different party in Canada paid for the bots, that an investigation ensures third-party advertising rules were followed; or that if a foreign actor is attempting to interfere in Canada’s election that appropriate investigations and actions are launched.
“Citizens can freely share their views and commentary about political events. Political parties can pay for advertising to promote a consistent message as per the transparency rules of the Elections Canada Act. However, if offshore bot farms are being utilized to circumvent these rules, it raises serious questions about the integrity of Canada’s democratic process,” wrote NDP deputy critic for Ethics Charlie Angus and NDP critic for Democratic Reform Lisa Marie Barron.
MyNorthBayNow.com has reached out to the Conservative Party of Canada for comment, but as of publishing on Friday has yet to receive a statement.
