Ontario Green Party left out of leaders' debate

The leaders’ debate will be held on June 3^rd in Toronto, but there’s one party you won’t see on the stage.

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner wasn’t invited to the debate.

While campaigning in Guelph on Saturday, Schreiner said he hoped voters would speak out about the decision to exclude the party. “We’re asking the citizens of Ontario to speak out for democratic debates.”

The televised debate is put together by a broadcast consortium made up of media outlets, including the CBC, CTV, Global, and TVO.

“The debate decision is done behind closed doors which I think is anti-democratic,” said Schreiner.

Voters in Guelph also weighed in on the decision.

“They have enough proportion of the general public interested in their party, [so] they should at least be represented,” said Bob Davis.

Schreiner says rules about inclusion should be better defined.

Elizabeth May, the former federal Green Party Leader, was included in the leaders’ debate in 2008, but then excluded from the 2011 debate.

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  Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner makes a campaign stop in Guelph. -- May 17, 2014

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  Green Party of Ontario Leader Mike Schreiner launches the party's election platform at Queen's Park in Toronto on Tuesday May 13, 2014. (Aaron Vincent Elkaim / THE CANADIAN PRESS)