A longtime former Manitoba N-D-P cabinet minister is being barred from running for the party in the coming election, according to one of his supporters.

 

Steve Ashton held the Thompson seat for 35 years before losing to a Progressive Conservative in 2016.

 

Blair Hudson, a Thompson representative on the N-D-P's provincial council, says Ashton submitted a nomination bid for the upcoming election, but was rejected by the party's candidate selection committee.

 

Hudson says Ashton has an appeal hearing today before the party's executive.

 

Hudson says he believes the rejection is a sign of ongoing bitterness from the N-D-P leadership race in 2017, when Ashton finished second to Wab Kinew.

 

Ashton has not responded to requests for comment.

 

Officials at N-D-P headquarters would only say that the candidate selection process is done by an arm's-length group, not by the leader or other elected officials.

 

N-D-P provincial secretary Tim Johnson says the party cannot comment further, in order to respect the privacy of prospective candidates.