Jonas Smith plans to run as an independent candidate after being turfed by the Conservative Party of Canada less than one week ago. The federal Conservatives dropped Smith on Aug. 12 over his views on public health guidelines. It appears that rapid testing is where Smith and the federal Conservatives don't align. Smith's platform looks much the same as they did when he was a Conservative candidate, he said. As the Conservative candidate in 2019, Smith narrowly lost to outgoing Liberal MP Larry Bagnell.

Source: CBC News August 17, 2021 22:07 UTC