‘The rift is getting bigger and bigger’: some Conservatives worried about party unity once ‘pretty nasty’ leadership campaign ends

Keith Beardsley, former deputy chief of staff to Stephen Harper, said that whoever becomes the next party leader should use the Mulroney and Harper models for bringing the party together. Bert Chen, former Ontario national councillor, said the most important test for the new leader will be to keep the party united.

Current and former senior Conservatives are concerned that the heated rhetoric amongst leadership candidates could split the party. Six candidates are vying for the party's top job, including Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre, top left, former Quebec premier Jean Charest, Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, Conservative MP Lelsyn Lewis, above left, Conservative MP Scott Aitchison, and former Independent Ontario MPP Roman Baber.The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade

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BY ABBAS RANA

June 6, 2022

The ongoing, divisive Conservative leadership campaign is causing serious concerns about party unity for some current and former senior Conservatives who say one of the key tests of the new leader will be to keep the party united. “The rift is getting bigger and bigger,” said Bert Chen, a forme...

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