Parry Sound-Muskoka MP Scott Aitchison has signaled his intent to run for leadership of his party, with an official announcement expected next week Global News confirmed early this afternoon.
Candice Bergen has been the party’s interim leader since Erin O’Toole resigned in early February after the Conservative caucus voted to remove him as leader. The only confirmed candidate to date is Pierre Poilievre.
“I am building a team that will bring Canadians and our party together,” Aitchison told Global. “We are still waiting for the final rules from the (party’s leadership organizing committee) and I’ll have more to say in the days ahead.”
Leadership candidates must submit an application by Apr. 19, including a $200,000 entry fee and a $100,000 refundable deposit to ensure compliance with the rules of the race.
Candidates have until June 3 to sign up new party members. Ballots are expected to be mailed to members in late July or early August.
Aitchison was first elected to Huntsville council at the age of 21 and has spent most of his adult life as a career politician serving Huntsville and the District of Muskoka, and now Parry Sound-Muskoka. He was elected to Parliament in 2019 and reelected in 2021. He currently serves as the Shadow Minister of Labour.
In his most recent Doppler column, Aitchison said, in part, “Canada is at a crossroads. I have never seen our country more divided and I believe that there are two paths our country can travel down.
“The first is a road of anger, hatred, fighting, and rhetoric. It’s a road of only listening to our own tribe and being unwilling to listen to other people’s ideas. Or we can travel down a second road and choose our better values. We can choose a road of hope, optimism, pluralism, and creativity. We can choose as Canadians to hear the other side, we can choose to respect differences of opinion. We can choose to value individual responsibility over static groupthink.”
The party’s new leader will be announced Sept. 10.
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Great News Scott! I’m 100% with you! You definitely have my support.
Scott will bring the PC party back together. We need a leader in this country that works for us. Someone that may stand up to activists. Someone that see the good in ALL of Canada. Scott is the man. As a PC Card carrier I will give him my vote! We need a change and he will bring it!
I have alt of respect for Scott and like his assertive approach. I believe the Conservative party needs to unify the party otherwise they will never defeat Trudeau, who I see as a very polarizing, incompetent and dangerous leader. Canada has moved backwards both doemestically and internationally. Scott will have an up hill challenge without the name recognition and would argue federal experience. The party needs potential leaders like Scott but may be too soon.
Maybe one of the roads to be taken by the “loyal opposition” might be one of constructive criticism and attempting to work together with the powers that be instead of automatically criticizing every move made by the government
Good example the act to break up the truck occupation whether good or bad could have and should have been supported by all parties instead of the weak opposition put forward during its debate
The retired chiefs of police that were interviewed on CBC new more about the act than most of our politicians
If the conservatives keep electing a new leader every few years we will never see a conservative majority
Great speech that you made in the House earlier.
Good luck with your ambition to become the Conservative Party leader
Mary and I will be supporting Scott from here in the Yukon… we’ve already bought our memberships!!
Good for you Scott. Certainly, you have the right philosophy and values for the job. Its quite a leap from being a small-town mayor, but opponents should never underestimate the ability of people to rise to the occasion in difficult times. Justin Trudeau, Doug Ford, and Volodymyr Zelensky are all good examples of that. So good luck Scott. We will be cheering for you.
Boy am I ever happy to hear this news In my opinion Scott will make the best Prime Minister this country has had in many many Years. I have never belonged to any political party but this might be a first time so I can get a vote.