OTTAWA — Jean Charest has compared the opponents who didn’t show up in the last federal Conservative leadership debate to fish that won’t swim.
But with six weeks until a winner is named, Wednesday’s event was largely an opportunity for the former Quebec premier to fish for votes.
“It’s the only strategy left,” said veteran conservative strategist Mélanie Paradis.
Charest had urged the party to hold a third and final debate in the contest and had applauded its decision to make it bilingual.
He appeared alongside rural Ontario MP Scott Aitchison and former Ontario MLA Roman Baber, while fellow candidates Leslyn Lewis and Pierre Poilievre decided to skip.
Tim Powers, whose Tory campaign work includes former prime ministers Stephen Harper and Joe Clark, wonders if there could be a backlash from some members disappointed by the no-shows – particularly Poilievre, the perceived favorite.
“Although he is popular now and sucks the money, he can never take Conservative Party members for granted.”
Charest’s path to victory is believed to be narrow at best, running through his home province of Quebec, as well as Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
His campaign took a more moderate tone and proposed a series of policies on domestic violence and health care, safety and climate change.
Throughout the race, as in Wednesday’s debate, Charest hammered home the party’s need for his experience as a political leader. He was once leader of the former federal Progressive Conservative Party and was a minister in Brian Mulroney’s cabinet.
Charest’s attempt to lead the federal Conservatives was something of a political comeback, as he spent 20 years off Parliament Hill and the last decade out of elected politics.
His main rival Poilievre has been an MP since 2004 and boasts of selling nearly 312,000 party memberships during the race – a figure that party headquarters have not publicly verified.
In total, the party claims to have an electoral list of nearly 679,000 names, of which 400,000 are believed to be new members.
With just 150,000 ballots returned to party headquarters Wednesday, Charest is addressing the thousands of people who have yet to cast theirs.
At this point, Paradis says Charest’s only game is to try to appeal to as many supporters of other candidates as possible, in hopes that they will put his name on the party’s ranked ballot.
“The real question is, if you’re a Scott Aitchison supporter and you haven’t cast your ballot yet, do you now think, ‘Well, maybe that’s too close and I have to put Charest first “?”
During the debate, Charest praised Aitchison and Baber. He agreed with Aitchison’s calls for party unity and said Baber acted admirably when defending his belief against COVID-19 lockdowns, which got him kicked out of the Progressive caucus- Conservative of Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
At one point in the debate, Charest addressed the MPs directly, telling them: “You all have a place at the table, I want you to know that.
Political analyst and former Conservative leadership candidate Rudy Husny says Quebec is crucial for Charest to win, and points to fundraising numbers that show Poilievre should not be underestimated alongside the former head of the province.
Documents filed with Elections Canada show Poilievre raised more than $4 million, compared to $1.3 million for Charest.
Husny says the fact that Poilievre got money from more Quebec donors than Charest did is a strong indicator of how many people are involved in the process and might be willing to show up and vote.
Figures released by the party show Conservative membership in the province also increased during the race to more than 58,000, up from 7,648 at the end of 2021.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 4, 2022.
Stephanie Taylor, The Canadian Press
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