Canada’s main opposition Conservative Party has chosen Erin O’Toole, a former cabinet minister and armed forces veteran, to be its new leader and the primary challenger to Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
O’Toole replaces Andrew Scheer as Conservative Party leader. Scheer failed to unseat Trudeau in a general election held last year.
In the leadership race, O’Toole beat out the better-known Peter MacKay, who co-founded the Conservative Party in 2003, and was a high-profile member of former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government, along with two other candidates.
The campaign was overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The results, announced in a virtual convention broadcast from Ottawa, were delayed five hours by mechanical problems with machines opening nearly 175,000 ballot envelopes.
While there is no new election looming, Trudeau needs the support of at least one of three opposition political parties to remain in power, and a crucial confidence vote on the government’s COVID-19 economic recovery plan is expected in late September.
O’Toole, a 47-year-old father of two, describes himself as a "true blue Conservative" and has vowed to "put Canada first" while helping families and the economy recover from the pandemic. A member of parliament from Ontario, O’Toole had twice before lost bids to lead the party. He takes over as Trudeau’s Liberals lead in national polls.
