A CBC investigation has found Conservative and Saskatchewan Party connections to an organization opposed to the "radical left" in Regina's municipal election.Since 2021, Advance Regina has been running thousands of dollars worth of advertising on social media and billboard campaigns complaining about crime, taxes and city services. It has characterized some councillors as "left-wing activists.""Our side did not show up. We need you to help fix that," says the group's Facebook page. "We will recruit, train and support candidates leading up to the next election."Advance Regina bills itself as "local residents who love our city," but the name of the person who created the website advanceregina.ca has been "redacted for privacy" from the public registry.As recently as June, Regina's Kaitlyn Blackmer-Tuchscherer was the group's sole public face, serving as its executive director. She was formerly the Saskatchewan Party's director of training and a constituency organizer.However, Blackmer-Tuchscherer texted to CBC on July 5, "I am no longer the executive director and have taken a step back from the organization."CBC reporter Geoff Leo made two small donations to Advance Regina to snoop out information. The non-tax-deductable donation receipt mentioned a separate organization — Canadians for Livable Cities, incorporated in Canada and Saskatchewan in 2023.An anonymous spokesperson told CBC by email that Advance Regina is "the only active … project of Canadians for Livable Cities."CLC has three directors — Trent Fraser, Dean Klippenstine and Bruce Evans — all from the Regina area. Fraser heads up a consulting firm in Regina and has experience as a Conservative Party candidate and a political organizer with the Saskatchewan Party.Klippenstine, a Regina-based accountant, has been financial agent for the Saskatchewan Party's Bill Hutchinson and Conservative Party MP Andrew Scheer.Evans is the former mayor of White City. He is also president of the Regina Qu'Appelle Electoral District Association for the Conservative Party, which has Scheer as MP.Asked by CBC about the secrecy at Advance Regina, the anonymous spokesperson replied, "we are a grassroots organization made up of dozens and dozens of volunteers and concerned citizens," adding, "your inquiries highlight that the media often focuses more on the messenger than the message itself."Advance Regina deleted the reference on its website to recruiting, training and supporting candidates days after CBC first reached out, even though it remained on the Facebook page."Advance Regina has transitioned to focus on issue-based advocacy, citizen and voter engagement, and promoting awareness of the current council's poor performance," CBC was told.A similar organization has spring up Saskatoon called A Better YXE. The Saskatoon StarPhoenix found that website was registered by Jarret Coels, a former Saskatchewan Party adviser.A receipt for CBC's $5 Advance Regina donation was numbered 831. An additional $3 donation was receipted 832, suggesting the there had been more than 800 prior donations.According to Advance Regina's Facebook page, it has been spending thousands of dollars on social media advertising with messages targeting "misplaced priorities and wasteful spending," and individual candidates and advocating "a new city council for Regina."CLC is registered as a federal, soliciting non-profit corporation. According to the Government of Canada's website, those corporations must provide Ottawa annual financial statements, which will be publicly available.The CBC traced Advance Regina's original to 2021. A proposal by Regina councillor Daniel Leblanc that would have banned fossil fuel companies from advertising with the city failed after a backlash."The recent attack on Saskatchewan's energy industry by some councillors is a slap in the face to the employers and workers at energy companies," said the Advance Regina ad, posted on Facebook by public relations worker Dale Richardson in January 2021.Richardson has also been a political operative, having served as the Saskatchewan Party's director of communications in 2018."Regina's new council is in danger of being overrun by left-wing activists," the ad continued.Richardson told CBC he has has not been with Advance Regina since 2021 and such third-party organizations don't have to disclose much."There are no third-party rules," he said. "Nobody needs to publish who donors are or who's on the board or who's hitting send on a tweet or a Facebook post."An emailed statement from the City of Regina to CBC confirmed the same: "There is no requirement for any third-party [group or individual] to register to support a specific candidate's campaign or to encourage candidates to run."
A CBC investigation has found Conservative and Saskatchewan Party connections to an organization opposed to the "radical left" in Regina's municipal election.Since 2021, Advance Regina has been running thousands of dollars worth of advertising on social media and billboard campaigns complaining about crime, taxes and city services. It has characterized some councillors as "left-wing activists.""Our side did not show up. We need you to help fix that," says the group's Facebook page. "We will recruit, train and support candidates leading up to the next election."Advance Regina bills itself as "local residents who love our city," but the name of the person who created the website advanceregina.ca has been "redacted for privacy" from the public registry.As recently as June, Regina's Kaitlyn Blackmer-Tuchscherer was the group's sole public face, serving as its executive director. She was formerly the Saskatchewan Party's director of training and a constituency organizer.However, Blackmer-Tuchscherer texted to CBC on July 5, "I am no longer the executive director and have taken a step back from the organization."CBC reporter Geoff Leo made two small donations to Advance Regina to snoop out information. The non-tax-deductable donation receipt mentioned a separate organization — Canadians for Livable Cities, incorporated in Canada and Saskatchewan in 2023.An anonymous spokesperson told CBC by email that Advance Regina is "the only active … project of Canadians for Livable Cities."CLC has three directors — Trent Fraser, Dean Klippenstine and Bruce Evans — all from the Regina area. Fraser heads up a consulting firm in Regina and has experience as a Conservative Party candidate and a political organizer with the Saskatchewan Party.Klippenstine, a Regina-based accountant, has been financial agent for the Saskatchewan Party's Bill Hutchinson and Conservative Party MP Andrew Scheer.Evans is the former mayor of White City. He is also president of the Regina Qu'Appelle Electoral District Association for the Conservative Party, which has Scheer as MP.Asked by CBC about the secrecy at Advance Regina, the anonymous spokesperson replied, "we are a grassroots organization made up of dozens and dozens of volunteers and concerned citizens," adding, "your inquiries highlight that the media often focuses more on the messenger than the message itself."Advance Regina deleted the reference on its website to recruiting, training and supporting candidates days after CBC first reached out, even though it remained on the Facebook page."Advance Regina has transitioned to focus on issue-based advocacy, citizen and voter engagement, and promoting awareness of the current council's poor performance," CBC was told.A similar organization has spring up Saskatoon called A Better YXE. The Saskatoon StarPhoenix found that website was registered by Jarret Coels, a former Saskatchewan Party adviser.A receipt for CBC's $5 Advance Regina donation was numbered 831. An additional $3 donation was receipted 832, suggesting the there had been more than 800 prior donations.According to Advance Regina's Facebook page, it has been spending thousands of dollars on social media advertising with messages targeting "misplaced priorities and wasteful spending," and individual candidates and advocating "a new city council for Regina."CLC is registered as a federal, soliciting non-profit corporation. According to the Government of Canada's website, those corporations must provide Ottawa annual financial statements, which will be publicly available.The CBC traced Advance Regina's original to 2021. A proposal by Regina councillor Daniel Leblanc that would have banned fossil fuel companies from advertising with the city failed after a backlash."The recent attack on Saskatchewan's energy industry by some councillors is a slap in the face to the employers and workers at energy companies," said the Advance Regina ad, posted on Facebook by public relations worker Dale Richardson in January 2021.Richardson has also been a political operative, having served as the Saskatchewan Party's director of communications in 2018."Regina's new council is in danger of being overrun by left-wing activists," the ad continued.Richardson told CBC he has has not been with Advance Regina since 2021 and such third-party organizations don't have to disclose much."There are no third-party rules," he said. "Nobody needs to publish who donors are or who's on the board or who's hitting send on a tweet or a Facebook post."An emailed statement from the City of Regina to CBC confirmed the same: "There is no requirement for any third-party [group or individual] to register to support a specific candidate's campaign or to encourage candidates to run."
