Windsor Mayor, Mendicino Texted About Emergencies Act Before It Was Invoked: Document

Protestors and supporters at a blockade at the foot of the Ambassador Bridge, sealing off the flow of commercial traffic over the bridge into Canada from Detroit in Windsor, on Feb. 10, 2022. Cole Burston/Getty Images

The mayor of Windsor, Ont., will testify today at a public inquiry into the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act to clear ‘Freedom Convoy’ protesters blockading streets around Parliament Hill and several border crossings.

The scheduled testimony from Drew Dilkens comes as a piece of evidence shows he exchanged texts with Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, who sought the mayor’s support for “any additional authorities” to keep the Ambassador Bridge open, hours before the legislation was announced.