A conservative Canadian politician who opinion polls suggest is leading the Manitoba election race, which is entering its final days, is facing tough criticism for spending too much time in Costa Rica since being elected to Manitoba’s Legislative Assembly in 2012.

Citing public records, Brian Pallister, Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative (PC) leader, has spent nearly one out of every five days, or about 240 days, of his time since being elected in Costa Rica, rather than in his province, according to the CBC.

According to the CBC, Pallister has travelled to Costa Rica 15 times since being elected to the legislature in September 2012, spending 18.2 percent of his total time in the land of “Pura Vida.”

His latest trip here was from January 31^st to February 10^th, according to the CBC, which cites public records.

Apparently, the candidate for premier even spent two weeks in Costa Rica in 2014 during the height of a devastating flood of the Assiniboine River, forcing the province to declare a state of emergency and deploy the military.   The flood caused some $4 billion in economic damage, according to the CBC and the Winnipeg Sun.

At the time, Pallister told the media that he was at a family wedding in Alberta and made no mention of the fact he was in Costa Rica.

The leader of Manitoba’s Liberal Party, Rana Bokhari, warned that Pallister could become a “part-time premier” if he wins the election, apparently due to his fondness of Costa Rica.

“240 days is a lot of days to not be in your province. Frankly, I think it’s insulting,” the CBC quoted Bokhari, who according to a Liberal Party spokesperson has spent just 9 days on vacation since becoming the Liberal leader in October 2013.

“If you have the honor of being in that legislature and to not value that when you already have it, you don’t have the right to be the premier,” Bokhari said.

Conservative party leaders, however, are defending Pallister’s frequent time in Costa Rica, describing the trips as “working vacations.”

“Mr. Pallister, like all members of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly, works incredibly hard for the people of Manitoba,” said PC spokesperson Olivia Billson in an emailed statement to the CBC. “Mr. Pallister’s working vacations took place outside of legislative assembly sessions.”

None of Pallister’s Costa Rica trips occurred when the legislature was sitting, according to the CBC.

Pallister has proactively disclosed that he owns a vacation property in Costa Rica and has a bank account here. “The account in Costa Rica and the property have always been reported on my tax return, which is confidential,” Pallister told reporters.

Manitoba’s elections are on Tuesday.