Dean Del Mastro, MP for Peterborough, took the stand again
today during a trial in which he and the former agent for his 2008 campaign, Richard
McCarthy, are charged with overspending and then covering up the misdeed.
Central to the Crown’s case is a $21,000 personal cheque paid by Del Mastro to Holinshed,
a now-defunct Ottawa-based polling firm.
The day started with Tom Lemon, counsel for the Crown, showing
Del Mastro spreadsheets of potential voters sent to him by Holinshed. Lemon
tried to pin down Del Mastro to indicate that this was evidence of voter ID on
the part of Holinshed, and not simply for getting out the vote on election day.
“I’ve been on a lot of campaigns, Mr. Lemon,” said Del
Mastro. “That entire list would have been for contacts on election day...Your
assumption is totally incorrect.”
As in previous examination by Lemon, Del Mastro proved
himself to be a skilled navigator of court proceedings. Clearly knowledgeable
of election processes, at times Del Mastro appeared to out-match Lemon.