Ford's ouster of Granic Allen has some asking why it didn't happen sooner

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford has drawn criticism from political analysts and supporters after he revoked the candidacy of Tanya Granic Allenjust weeks ahead of the June 7 election.

Ford's announcement came shortly after theOntario Liberals held a news conference that zeroed in on a 2014 video in which they sayGranicAllen "spewed hatred and homophobia" while discussing sexual education at a Croatian-Catholic Youth weekend inNorval, Ont.

The revelation left somequestioning why he didn't remove her sooner.

"If Liberal researchers can find these things online, there's no reason why the provincial nominations committee who was tasked with screening candidates for these things couldn't have found these things," saidJamieEllerton, a former Ontario PC candidate in theParkdale-HighPark riding. Ellerton wasone of only three openly gay PC candidates during the 2014 provincial election.

The 10-second video, which was edited and posted on the Liberals' website, showsGranicAllen saying that when she sees Croatia "trying to push radicalsexualizationon the young, or gay marriage, I almost vomit in disbelief."

CBCNews has not independently verified the video's origins.

Ford declined an interview with CBCNews on Sunday. Instead, spokesperson Melissa Lantsmansaid Ford's statement, which describedGranicAllen's comments as "irresponsible," would be the party's only comment on the matter.

"We are a party comprised of people with diverse views that if expressed responsibly we would respect," read the statement issued Saturday evening.

While some observers lauded the move, it left others questioning howGranicAllen became a candidate in the first place.

"GranicAllen's discriminatory and bigoted statements should have kept her out of politics in the province of Ontario," Chris Buckley, president of the Ontario Federation of Labour, said in a statement.

"It is essential that we elect representatives who will support co-operation, collaboration and understanding among the people of Ontario and in our government."

Ellerton, meanwhile,commended Ford for showing "decisive leadership" by removingGranicAllen, but blames the party for not catching the comments sooner.

"To have such vile comments specifically target a group of people with the terms that she used, there's just no place for that in Ontario politics," saidEllerton, noting her history of controversial commentsmade her a political liability for the PCs.

"She's welcome to her own views, but when you look at when you're a team, when you're a member of a political party, everyone else having to defend such vile comments is very much a distraction."

GranicAllen, 37, won the PC nomination for Mississauga Centre last month. Premier KathleenWynneappointed BobbieDaidas the Liberals' candidate in the riding shortly after, partly to counter what she says areGranicAllen's discriminatory views.

GranicAllen, a former Tory leadership hopeful, gained notoriety during the race for her fierce criticism of Ontario's recently revised sex ed cirriculum.

Previously a relatively unknown parental rights and anti-abortion advocate, Granic Allen was thekingmaker in the PC leadership race. Many of her supporters backed Ford on second and third ballots after she was eliminated from the contest.

Granic Allen was the only candidate to appear by Ford's side as he addressed reporters following his victory.

Political analyst MichaelCorenasserted she is a big reason why Ford secured enough votes to eke out his narrow win. WithoutGranicAllen, Ford may not have successfully courted the party's social conservative members, he added.

"I get the strong feeling that Doug Ford was fairly happy with that, until people said to himprobably more experienced peoplethere's a lot of baggage here and this could backfire," said Coren, a broadcaster and commentator who was once identified as a "moral conservative."

Ford also refused to heed calls from the Liberals andNDPto dropGranicAllen as a PC candidate.

This is not the first time the staunch social conservativehas come under fire for past comments online.

Granic Allen's inflammatory posts and tweets about Muslims and gay marriage, which date back to 2013 and 2014, surfaced last month.

Corenbelieves the timing of GranicAllen's removal is significant.

This is an"intelligent and wise move," he said,that will appeal to those voters who don't see eye-to-eye with the socially conservative elements in the party but arelooking for an alternative toWynne.

"Just before the writ is dropped and the election begins, the conservatives have said, 'we're not as extreme as you thought we were,'" Coren said.

Some supporters of Granic Allen, however, characterized Ford'smove as "[declaring]war on social conservatives."

"We're ready to do battle," saidJeffGunnarson, vice-president ofCampaign Life Coalition, a pro-life organization, in a statement.

Others, like Toronto Coun. Kristyn Wong-Tam, questioned Ford'scredibility, asserting that Ford must be held accountable for supporting GranicAllen because he was previously awareofher "bigoted opinions."

"Cutting her loose now doesn't free him or the PCs of hateful politics. It's always about more than just one person," she wrote in a tweet.

The first televised leaders' debate of the election race kicks off Monday night between Wynne, Ford and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath.