The election campaign director for the B.C. Conservatives is not going anywhere, the party’s leader says.

Katy Merrifield reportedly used an epithet and Islam together in a social media post in June. It was taken down shortly afterwards.

At Wednesday night’s B.C. leaders’ debate, interim party leader Lorne Doerkson was asked about Merrifield by moderator Shachi Kurl. He said she would be staying on.

Doerkson said Merrifield was a survivor of sexual violence and the post was made in a “moment of trauma” for her.

BC NDP Leader David Eby questioned Doerkson’s leadership for keeping Merrifield on, saying he was minimizing her words. “Her Twitter feed reads like the worst corners of the dark web,” Eby said.

Doerkson said he was shocked Eby would go after Merrifield, instead of giving her “grace.”

It launched a lengthy back and forth between Eby and Doerkson about alleged hateful comments made by their respective candidates.

The NDP and Muslim organizations previously raised concerns over Merrifield’s social media post. The BC Muslim Association and the Unified Muslim Associations of B.C. have called for the Conservatives to take action.

–With files from The Canadian Press