Ottawa has instructed Canadian diplomats in the United States to avoid contact and public visibility with U.S. midterm election candidates and elected officials.
The Story
Canadian diplomats were directed this week not to meet with, or attend events with, candidates in the U.S. midterm elections.
In a memo sent midday Tuesday, Glen Linder, assistant deputy minister for the Americas at Global Affairs Canada, told members of the foreign service in the United States that if they were in “the same physical space” as a candidate or elected official, they should avoid being photographed and ensure their name or position does not appear in any public communications materials.
The memo says the instructions are similar to those in place during election periods in Canada, when public servants are expected to avoid contact with elected officials except in exceptional circumstances.
The direction comes as the Trump administration has accused Canadian politicians of interfering in American elections. The memo says Global Affairs Canada must take a “very risk-averse approach,” citing “heightened sensitivity.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney has disputed the suggestion of Canadian interference.
← More stories