A former Liberal Democrat provost has called on unionist voters to back the Tory candidate in Gordon in an effort to unseat Alex Salmond.
Bridge of Don councillor John Reynolds, who now sits as an independent, said the general election could be a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to see off the ex-first minister.
He claimed his old party had “no chance” of winning and told voters: “You can still be a Liberal Democrat and vote Conservative this time.”
But David Evans, who is standing for the Lib Dems against Conservative Colin Clark, said if he was serious about getting rid of Mr Salmond, he should “stand aside and let the real contenders clear him out”.
He added: “Having been in coalition with the Conservatives on Aberdeen City Council since 2012, Councillor Reynolds is hardly an impartial observer.
“The Tories can’t blame the curriculum for excellence for their shoddy maths.
“The Liberal Democrats held this seat for 32 years, the Conservatives are 20,000 votes behind in Gordon, if anyone’s splitting the vote here it’s them.”
A spokesman for Mr Salmond, who won 47.7% of the vote in 2015 beating the Lib Dems into second and Tories into third, accused Mr Reynolds of misjudging the mood.
He added: “Real Liberals do not want alliances with the Tories, they want real opposition to Tory policies. That is why the former Liberal councillor for Inverurie Mike Raeburn has just endorsed Alex Salmond for Gordon.”
In his intervention, Mr Reynolds said: “This could be a once in a life time opportunity to unseat Alex Salmond and send a clear message to the Scottish Government.
“I am a former Liberal Democrat councillor, realise my old party has no chance of winning and would encourage everyone in Gordon who voted Lib Dem in 2015 to vote for Colin Clark.”
Mr Clark welcomed the backing, adding: “It is a two-horse race between the Scottish Conservatives and the SNP.”
But Lib Dem peer Malcolm Bruce, who stood down in 2015 after more than three decades as Gordon MP, said the constituency did not want a representative “who will take us out of the single market and slash pension benefits which is what the Tories want a mandate for”.
Labour’s candidate in the seat is Kirsten Muat.