Canada’s federal Conservative Party ousted their leader, Erin O’Toole, after he failed to stem internal dissent that has been building since last year’s defeat in a general election.
O’Toole, a military veteran and lawyer, tried to moderate the Conservative Party’s image with policies that appealed to centrist suburban voters. His removal potentially opens the door for the party to move sharply to the right.
Pierre Poilievre, a strict conservative who is popular with the Conservative base, is a frontrunner to take the helm of the party now that O’Toole has been voted out.
O’Toole, 49, reversed the party’s opposition to a carbon price, alienating traditional supporters in oil-producing western Canada. He also attempted to walk a fine line on the convoy of truckers that has occupied downtown Ottawa since January 28. He supported their right to oppose vaccine mandates but avoided identifying closely with the group, some of whom hold extreme views.
Poilievre, the party’s 42-year-old finance critic, embraced the trucker demonstrations, meeting with the protesters in-person and defending their right to free speech.
Discontent over O’Toole’s attempt to move to the centre has been simmering for months and burst into open rebellion this week, with more than a third of his caucus calling for his removal.
The caucus forced a confidence vote of elected lawmakers that O’Toole lost by a 73 to 45 margin.
Conservative Members of Parliament will meet later this week to elect an interim leader who will take on the role until a full leadership contest can be held. It will be the third leadership race for the party since former Prime Minister Stephen Harper resigned in 2015 after his election loss to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
