Federal Conservative candidate Pierre Poilievre signs a placard for a supporter during a meeting and salute at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver last week. With 10 days left for candidates to run for the Conservative leadership – and owes $ 20,000 worth of commissions – what catches the eye of the latest attendees is the crowds. More specifically, who pulls them and who does not. Pierre Poilievre will fall into the first category, as the longtime member of parliament for the Ottawa region appears steadily in front of mass groups of people in rallies across the country. “The kind of draw that people have to make is unprecedented,” said Connor Hollingshead, president of the Conservative campus club at Simon Fraser University, who says he does not support anyone. Poilievre recently spoke to students in Vancouver at an event co-hosted by Conservatives at the University of British Columbia. Later that Thursday, he spoke to a crowd that the campaign said had grown to more than 1,000. On Saturday, Poilievre will speak in Kelowna and Vernon. Staying late to smile for photos and greet those waiting in long lines to meet him was also a common occurrence at events – as were subscription sales. Signing up new members and then following up to make sure they fill out their ballots correctly and post everything on time is the goal of successful leadership campaigns. As of Saturday, candidates are less than two months away from registering before the June 3 deadline. Among the buzz created around Poilievre, who was the first to participate in the competition, is who attends his events. Not only conservative believers flock, but also those who do not usually attend political events, including those under the age of 40. “The Poilievre movement has taken off across the country and is just the beginning,” Senator Leo Husakos, co-chair of his campaign, wrote on Twitter. Hollingshead says he saw some of them first hand. About 150 people, most of them students, came to the campus event. He said this was the largest crowd they have seen in the last five years, when reality star Kevin O’Leary was nominated for the party’s top spot in 2017. “They are definitely a different kind of politician,” Hollingshead told Poilievre. “It speaks to many of the frustrations that young people have in this country.” One of its main messages is to turn against the price of a house. In Vancouver, Poilievre also promised to uphold freedom of speech at universities, at one point joking that a sudden loud sound was reaching the censors to catch him. When he promised to withdraw money from the CBC – a popular Conservative rally – the crowd cheered. He also succeeded in giving speeches with references to historical figures such as Winston Churchill and John Diefenbaker. read more Do you have an opinion? Send it to [email protected]
