Conservative Party of Canada supporters looking to future after Erin O’Toole ousted
Posted February 2, 2022 5:48 pm.
Last Updated February 2, 2022 6:25 pm.
With Erin O’Toole being removed from his position as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) caucus by its MPs, party supporters are looking to the future with an eye on what it will take to win the next election.
“If you run on a set of policies then those are the set of policies you go into an election with,” Lisa Raitt, a CPC deputy leader between 2017 and 2019 as well as a former cabinet minister under Stephen Harper, told CityNews Wednesday afternoon.
Raitt reflected on O’Toole’s tenure as leader after Conservative MPs voted 73 to 45 to remove him earlier in the afternoon from his position as the caucus’s parliamentary leader. He subsequently resigned as CPC leader.
About one-third of the caucus triggered a leadership review after weeks of anger and disappointment over his performance since the 2021 election loss.
She said after he campaigned for the leadership in 2020 as a “true blue tory” and criticized Peter Mackay’s more centrist vision, O’Toole pivoted to become more moderate to move forward.
“I think eventually he could have gotten there and run with that platform, but unfortunately the pivot was so quick it left a lot of the members behind and they hadn’t anticipated it,” Raitt said.
“As a result, they were not happy when the general election didn’t go their way, they were defeated and they wanted to have a leadership review immediately.”
Jeff Ballingall, a Conservative advisor and a supporter of O’Toole, described O’Toole’s time as leader as “one of lost potential.”
“I think there’s so much more we could have done. I think it’s sad it ended today,” he told CityNews Wednesday afternoon.
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Despite that sentiment, Ballingall said the next CPC leader needs to have a bolder overall vision while working to modernize the party. He also said the next leader needs to embrace out-of-the-box thinking when it comes to policies and be proactive in communicating those policies.
“When we’re staring at our feet, when we’re always reacting, when we’re not setting the agenda, that’s when we get tripped up,” Ballingall said.
“We shouldn’t be screaming at each other or screaming at Canadians. We need to be showing positive, tangible, real things to improve the lives of Canadians.”
He said after a clear, concise, positive vision is formed, members of the party need to be where people are, such as malls, colleges and universities, and religious institutions, to communicate that vision.
“We need to do a better job of being culturally relevant to Canadians because we’re not … where we can actually demonstrate we have solutions as opposed to just grievances – that is the path to victory and I don’t think we have done a good job at that.”
Meanwhile, Raitt said she thinks electability will be front and centre for many members when the time comes to choose a new leader. She said someone who conveys trustworthiness to implement the platform conveyed.
“I don’t think we’re going to get into the nitty-gritty in terms of what they stand for in terms of social conservative issues,” Raitt added.
For his part, O’Toole offered some parting thoughts on what he thinks the party needs to do. He said that while it has its ideology, it also must win power.
“This country needs a Conservative party that is both an intellectual force and governing force. Ideology without power is vanity,” O’Toole said.
“Seeking power without ideology is hubris.”
With files from Cynthia Mulligan and The Canadian Press
