After being dropped by Liberals, Rod Loyola will run as independent in Edmonton southeast

Just a week after launching his campaign, Rod Loyola who was the Liberal Party candidate for Edmonton Gateway was booted out after a 2009 video of him praising Hamas and Hezbollah resurfaced on social media.

Loyola in his statement on Friday said he will run as an independent candidate in Edmonton southeast, the riding he originally wanted to run in. This means, Loyola will be running against former mayor Amarjeet Sohi who is the Liberal candidate for that riding.

Loyola in his statement on Friday said, “I did not think that an intro at a hip-hop segment 16 years later would get me “cancelled” after close to a decade of serving as an elected representative at the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, but here we are.”

“I unequivocally condemn brutal killings, terrorism, and abduction – whoever does it. What was perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 was completely unacceptable and heart breaking – the loss of innocent life irrespective of race, faith or creed is a loss to humanity,” he added.

Confirming with CityNews, party officials said that Loyola is out of the running. “Mr. Loyola is no longer our candidate for Edmonton Gateway,” a party spokesperson said in the emailed statement. The party did not comment on its reasons for parting ways with Loyola.

The party’s decision to drop him as a candidate comes after the National Post reported on a 2009 video of Loyola praising Hamas and Hezbollah at an anti-NATO protest began doing the rounds on social media Loyola, who was a rapper with a group called People’s Poets, said in the 2009 video that Hamas and Hezbollah, both listed terrorist organizations in Canada, should be lionized, not condemned.

Performing on the steps of the Winston Churchill square, Loyola, under the stage name Rosouljah is heard saying “Hezbollah and Hamas are really trying to stand up for their people and that really needs to be recognized. These are movements for national liberation not terrorists,” at the start of the video.

CityNews reached out to Loyola who has not responded to our request for comment.

Party officials have not commented on their plans to find a replacement for Loyola.

Loyola who was an NDP MLA since 2015, in Edmonton Ellerslie resigned from his seat to run for MP as liberal candidate for Edmonton Gateway. His resignation from the Alberta legislature took effect in late March and will trigger a byelection.

The United Conservative Caucus in a statement on Friday condemned the Alberta NDP for continuing to tolerate extreme views in their ranks, after Carney Liberals revoked Loyola’s candidacy. 

“Rod Loyola is now officially too extreme for the federal Liberals,” said Chief Government Whip Shane Getson. “But for a full decade, he was welcomed by the Alberta NDP — including under both Rachel Notley and Naheed Nenshi. The NDP never disciplined him. They never distanced themselves. They never once said his views crossed the line.”

Loyola has a long track record of radical rhetoric, praising communist dictators like Fidel Castro and Hugo Chávez. Despite all this, the Alberta NDP gave him critic roles, allowed him to run for leader, and continued to keep him in their caucus without consequence, they stated.

However, this is the third candidate that has been dismissed by the liberal party since the federal election campaign began.

The Liberals also recently cut ties with Liberal incumbent Paul Chiang in the Toronto area and Thomas Keeper in Calgary-Confederation.

Earlier this week, alleged personal or online missteps also led the Conservatives to boot four of its nominees from running in Toronto, Montreal, Metro Vancouver and Windsor, Ontario.

—— With files from Canadian Press