Queen Elizabeth’s death forces Tories to readjust leadership announcement – ​​National

The Queen’s passing prompted the Conservative Party of Canada to rethink how it announces its next leader.

The party had planned to do so with an event in Ottawa on Saturday, but the monarch’s death now means the country will be in mourning during this time.

The chair of the party’s leadership election organizing committee said in a statement Thursday that the party would abide by the protocols surrounding his death.

Ian Brodie said the committee is « considering an appropriate and respectful way » to announce the race results and will provide an update early Friday.

The party had already reserved space at a convention center in downtown Ottawa, sold tickets for $150 and created a list of speakers for the event, including the former cabinet minister and running mate 2020 director Peter Mackay as special guest.

Senior party brass, MPs and those from different campaigns had all planned to arrive in Ottawa for the event.

On Thursday, the party also began the process of putting 400,000 ballots into counting machines to prepare for the results announcement expected on Saturday.

This is the second time the Conservative Party’s announcement of a new leader has had to adjust.

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Update on the Conservative leadership race

The 2020 race that saw former leader Erin O’Toole win was interrupted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing campaigns to cancel in-person rallies and forego large crowds, including for the announcement of the results.

Before this weekend, the party had celebrated the fact that nearly 418,000 party members had voted on an electoral list of some 678,700 names.

He says these numbers set records in Canadian politics and demonstrate the momentum behind the party because tens of thousands of new members have signed up.

Longtime Tory MP Pierre Poilievre said his campaign sold more than 300,000 memberships, leading many in the party to believe he had the best chance of winning the contest thanks to his central message of freedom ».

Poilievre and other contestants took to social media after news of the Queen’s death was announced on Thursday to express their condolences.