Supporters urging Doug Ford to run for federal Conservative leadership

Ford Nation is uniting under a new cause – Doug for prime minister.

Fans of the former city councillor launched the website RunDougRun.com on Monday, urging Ford to run for Leader of the Conservative Party if Stephen Harper steps down following the Oct. 19 federal election.

“Doug Ford represents the only true blue-values leader who can be an advocate for strong conservative values and connect with Canadian families from communities across the country,” supporters posted on the unofficial website. “We believe the party we love has the ability to continually become a stronger champion of conservative values.”

The website calls for Ford to instill “policies and legislation based on traditional conservative values, such as the traditional family” and pledge to “minimize any and all barriers for law-abiding citizens to own firearms, including unnecessary licenses” along with instituting a two-tier healthcare system and supporting anti-abortion legislation.

According to the website, they already have dozens of of people across the country eager to back Ford should he announce his intentions to run.

This comes just days after Ford told Bloomberg News that he hopes Harper will be “prime minister for the next 20 years.”

But if Harper had to step down?

“I never say never in politics. But as of right now I am supporting the prime minister 100 per cent. I’m going to be out there – and have been out there – door-knocking and helping out every which way I can.”

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His comments came after Rob Ford, his younger brother and Toronto’s former mayor, said Doug Ford would run if Harper stepped down.

“Doug said if it’s a minority government, Harper’s going to step down. He wants to run for leadership,” Rob Ford said in an interview Thursday.

“If it’s one member, one vote, he said, you know, he’s as popular as anyone else across Canada.”

Tensions between the Fords and the federal Conservatives have been strained in the past, which could hurt Ford’s chances to represent the party. In 2013, at the height of Rob Ford’s crack cocaine scandal, prominent federal Conservative Jason Kenney said Ford should step down.

Doug Ford finished second to John Tory in the 2014 mayoral election and is not on city council. After the loss, he said he would represent the Ontario PC party. He quickly backed away from those statements, saying he would not make a leadership bid.

With files from Erin Criger