According to the Globe and Mail, Canada's election law dictates that no one may donate more than $1,100, in total, to help candidates in a single leadership race. So, if a Liberal supporter gave $1,100 to one of Hall Findlay's competitors, they are not permitted to give money to her.
It is a rule that was imposed retroactively by the Conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper. When the 2006 Liberal leadership campaign began, every donor was allowed to contribute $5,400 and the candidates budgeted and borrowed accordingly.
According to the Globe, there is talk that the Conservative government is planning on changing the rules again, allowing contributions of $1,100 per year. But there is no indication that it will be applied retroactively.
The problem with the story is that everyone is reading it wrong.
They owe money to clear their campaign debts but they don't owe that money to elections Canada or any federal body.
The money was most likely borrowed from a supporter or themselves. In most of these situations the person who loaned the money doesn't want it back. (especially in a case where they loaned themselves money) Campaigns have donation limits so the donor donated up to the limit and then loaned the difference to the campaign. This allows the campaign to spend money that it anticipates raising as the campaign continues. They also have time after the campaign to raise a bit more money to pay back the money they "borrowed".
The problem is that it can become a spending race where everyone borrows money knowing that if they win they can hold a fundraising dinner right after and generate enough money to pay back the loan. Those who lose or drop out early have a much tougher go at bringing in new money.
People can debate the limits that a person should be allowed to donate to a campaign, but the fact is that they are necessary to prevent a single person or small group from effectively buying an election. By limiting it to $1000 it ensures that anyone who runs has a large base of support and isn't beholden to a few rich individuals.
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That's kind of a bummer actually. Hall-Findlay has some very good policy planks (e.g. eliminating supply management in dairy/poultry) and it would suck for her to be not viable as a Liberal leadership candidate because she's buried in campaign debt from the last go-around.
