OTTAWA—The Conservative leadership race is starting to take form as potential candidates seek support at the summer caucus retreat, bringing some contenders that much closer to making their move.
“I think this is really the last ingredient,” Conservative MP Erin O'Toole said of the time he will spend speaking to his caucus colleagues as they gather in Halifax to plan for their return to Parliament Hill next week.
The news this week that former cabinet minister Peter MacKay has officially decided not to join the race has cleared the way for other hopefuls—and more precisely, their potential campaign teams and financial donors—to start making their own intentions known, even if most political observers did not consider his decision a surprise.
“I would suspect that now, nobody is waiting for anybody else to enter, so you need to signal your intentions sooner rather than later,” said Conservative strategist Tim Powers.
