OTTAWA — One candidate has decided to join the nascent Conservative leadership race so far and the timing and rules will help determine how many others will end up on the ballot. Ottawa-area MP Pierre Poilievre announced his intention Saturday to replace Erin O’Toole, who was forced out of his job as leader last week by his fellow members of Parliament. The declaration came before the party’s national council appointed a leadership election organizing committee, which is tasked with setting the fee amounts and signature requirements that candidates must meet to enter the race.. Rob Batherson, the party president, said the first thing to figure out is the length of the race.
“My own view is we have to strike a balance,” he said in a recent interview.
“What’s the timing that strikes that balance between getting a new leader in place in an uncertain minority government environment, while giving candidates and members a fair chance to participate in the democratic process?” The party last searched for a new leader in 2020, after Saskatchewan MP Andrew Scheer announced in December 2019 that he would stay in the job only until a new leader was chosen. The race began the next month and was supposed to end by June, but the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in March saw the vote pushed back to mid-August 2020. When it comes to timing, the party is talking about a matter of months. Batherson said he is confident that a permanent leader will be in place by the end of the year.Shakir Chambers, a political strategist who helped Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives win Ontario’s 2018 provincial election, said a federal election ..
Source: ctvnews.ca
Tuesday, April 28, 2026
