Meet the people vying for Conservative leadership
The pandemic-postponed Conservative leadership race is finally winding down, with the campaigns in frantic get-outthe-vote mode, encouraging voters to send in their ballots, conducting exit polls and even hand-delivering some ballots to party headquarters by the Aug. 21 deadline.
As the last ballots are jammed into mailboxes, here are some fun facts on each of the candidates in the race:
ERIN O’TOOLE
Job before politics: O’Toole was a navigator on a Sea King helicopter in Nova Scotia before pursuing the law degree that would ultimately lead him to politics.
Fun fact:O’Toole is the son of former Ontario Member of Provincial Parliament Jack O’Toole, who was the member for Durham Region. Erin O’Toole now represents the same area federally.
Family life: O’Toole has been married to his wife, Rebecca, since 2000, and they have two children.
Bright spot: By coming right out of the gate and demanding a massive reduction in funding for the CBC, O’Toole showed party members that he was the candidate of Conservative red meat.
Spot of trouble: O’Toole has run a relatively mistakefree campaign, but the persistent concern about his candidacy is that his “true blue Conservative” identity isn’t entirely consistent with the Tory MP’s real persona.
PETER MACKAY
Job before politics: Before entering politics, the Nova Scotia native was a lawyer. He
worked as a Crown prosecutor for four years before being elected as an MP at the age of 31 in the riding of Central Nova, previously held by his father. Fun fact: In 2006, MacKay was romantically linked with then-U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, a story even the New York Times felt compelled to report on, although the paper referred to the rumours as “baseless speculating.”
Family life: MacKay is married to Nazanin AfshinJam, a human rights activist and former Miss World Canada. They have three children.
Bright spot: MacKay is selling safety. He has positioned himself as the least-risky candidate, who can win over suburbanites and won’t alienate swing voters by straying
too far to the right. He also brings a long resumé of cabinet experience, having served as justice, defence and foreign affairs minister.
Spot of trouble: Although he has been seen as the frontrunner since entering the race, MacKay’s main drawback has been a steady procession of gaffes, including criticizing opponent Erin O’Toole for voting in favour of a bill banning discrimination against transgender people and then quickly taking it back the next day.
LESLYN LEWIS
Job before politics: Before entering the leadership race, Lewis was a corporate lawyer for about 20 years before starting up her own law firm. She also had a brief stint in criminal law. Fun fact: Lewis’s only other
experience in politics was in Toronto, where she stepped in mid-campaign for Conservative candidate Jerry Bance in the 2015 federal election. Bance was infamously caught urinating in a mug on an investigative TV show and had to drop out.
Family life: It is a testament to how new Lewis is on the political scene that details about her family life are scarce. She refused interviews in the early part of her campaign and has only recently started doing the media rounds.
Bright spot: Lewis surprised some by making it past the final cut-off in the race, but party insiders expect this is just the beginning of her career in politics. Her glittering resumé as a highly educated Toronto lawyer and her soft-spoken social conservative credentials
have made her intriguing to voters.
Spot of trouble: As far as campaigns go, Lewis has been squeaky clean, attracting praise from party veterans and even the other candidates. Of course, her opponents want to win over her supporters in the ranked ballot election, so they have an incentive to play nice, but it’s also a testament to her performance in the race. The only criticism in Conservative circles is that she will need to develop a thicker skin if she plans to stick around in politics.
DEREK SLOAN
Job before politics: Before going back to school to get a law degree, Sloan ran a furniture store in Oshawa, ON.
Fun fact: Sloan is believed to be the first-ever member of the Seventh-Day Adventist church to be elected to Parliament. Family life: Sloan and his wife Jennifer have three young children.
Bright spot: The littleknown MP for HastingsLennox and Addington was first elected to Parliament last year, so simply raising enough money and collecting enough signatures to make the final cut-off for candidates was a major achievement. Sloan has been working to appeal to social conservatives in the party.
Spot of trouble: Sloan has attracted criticism from all corners, including his colleagues, since he entered the race. In January, Sloan said it was “scientifically unclear” whether being gay was a choice or not and, in April, he shot a video questioning whether Canada’s Chief Medical Officer Theresa Tam worked “for Canada or for China?”