Fairvote Canada

The Green Party will participate in two federal leaders' debates this month after meeting the minimum requirements to attend, organizers said Tuesday.

The Leaders' Debates Commission said the party met two of the three required criteria to have its leader invited to both the French debate on April 16 and the English debate April 17.

Both debates will take place at 7 p.m. in Montreal.

It hadn't been certain whether the Greens would qualify, because the threshold to attend was higher this year than in 2021. Back then, parties only had to meet one of three criteria.

This year, it was two of the following three:

• The leader's party had to be represented in the House of Commons by at least one MP before dissolution.
• The leader's party must be polling at least four per cent 28 days before voting day, based on the most recent results of "leading national public opinion polling organizations."
• The party must have candidates nominated in at least 90 per cent of federal ridings across Canada, also 28 days before the federal election.

The Greens made the cut for the first and third criteria. The party has two co-leaders: Jonathan Pedneault and Elizabeth May, but it is Pedneault taking on "singular leadership roles" when required during the campaign.