OTTAWA – The Conservative Party of Canada’s plan to host a third leadership debate in August may be falling apart, with one candidate refusing to attend and another weighing in on whether it’s really necessary.
The campaign for perceived front-runner Pierre Poilievre announced Thursday that the longtime lawmaker will not participate in the debate, facing the consequences of a hefty fine.
Jenni Byrne, a senior member of Poilievre’s team, posted a scathing statement on Twitter explaining his decision after the party announced earlier in the day that it would go ahead with a debate in early August.
Conservative Party rules state that candidates must take part in formal leadership debates or face an “automatic penalty of $50,000”.
“Participation is compulsory and no substitution will be allowed,” according to the rules.
Byrne’s statement noted that Poilievre participated in the first two official debates in May, plus one held by the Canada Strong and Free Network – an organization that promotes the conservative movement.
He also slammed the English-language debate held in Edmonton for featuring sound effects and a series of questions about the candidates’ taste in music and television.
“It wasn’t the campaign’s fault that the party’s Edmonton debate was widely recognized as an embarrassment – the candidates were given ping-pong paddles to hold up when they wanted to speak. It was more of a game than a conversation,” the statement said.
“And it happened despite strong warnings to the party about both the moderator and the scheme – all of which were ignored.”
The debate was hosted by former political journalist Tom Clark, whom Poilievre’s campaign criticized as a “liberal media personality of the Laurentian elite.”
A request for comment from Clark has not yet been returned.
Party spokesman Yaroslav Baran said he understood “there are multiple views on the discussions that have taken place so far” and stressed that the rules of the race say attendance is mandatory.
Byrne’s statement said the plan for another debate comes as the Poilievre campaign works to win votes among Conservative members. The MP boasts that he has sold almost 312,000 memberships – a figure that party headquarters will not verify. This is more than the total number of members the party had when Erin O’Toole became leader in 2020.
The party said a record number of people – about 675,000 – registered for membership ahead of the vote.
Members have until early September to return their ballots before the results are revealed in Ottawa on September 10. Voting is already underway, with most of the ballots having been mailed out.
Poilievre’s campaign continues to attack leadership candidate Jean Charest’s repeated calls for a third debate, saying the former Quebec premier could not draw the same audience sizes as Poilievre in the spring when candidates were selling subscriptions to supporters.
“That’s why he wants another conversation – to use Pierre’s popularity with members to carve out an audience he can’t get on his own.”
In response, Charest’s campaign accused Poilievre of preferring to create messages on social media “rather than answering questions in real time.”
“Jean NEVER shied away from answering difficult questions,” she says, adding that she felt the format of the French-language discussion held in Laval, Que., was constructive.
Leslyn Lewis, a Social Conservative MP from Ontario who is also running, said party members had a chance to see leadership candidates lay out their visions for the country in the previous two debates, which remain online.
“I’m not sure what value we’re giving members through a rushed program discussion at this time,” she said in a statement.
Like Poilievre, Lewis emphasized that it’s an important stage in the race for candidates to meet members and says she has a busy schedule of events.
“I’ve found that the concerns of everyday Canadians are very different from the high-level policy questions we’re asked during official debates,” he said.
“The issues facing rural Canadians were not represented in the discussions that took place.”
As for whether she plans to run, her campaign says she is in discussions with the party.
In addition to Charest, candidates Scott Aitchison, a rural Ontario MP, and Roman Baber, a former Ontario legislator, had also expressed hope for another debate.
Poilievre’s decision to skip the event means there will be not one, but at least two fewer candidates on stage, given Patrick Brown’s recent disqualification for allegedly violating federal election laws.
Brown denied the accusation.
It’s also not the first time during the race that planning for a debate has been sidelined.
Poilievre declined to participate in an informal while the candidates were at the Calgary Stampede.
The Independent Press Gallery, an organization representing various media outlets and journalists, also announced it had to cancel a planned debate because not enough candidates confirmed they would attend.
The party’s leadership election organizing committee says it decided Wednesday afternoon to move ahead with a third formal debate after surveying members last week. About 24,000 responded.
“The response has been overwhelmingly positive,” Baran said.
Although officials and campaigns have just weeks to plan the event, campaigns were told earlier in the race that their candidates could be called back for a debate in early August at the party’s discretion.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 21, 2022.
