The recent disqualification of Patrick Brown has forced a realignment of the Conservative Party leadership race as other campaigns seek votes from Brown’s supporters.
“I think a lot of people who were going to vote for Patrick Brown are going to end up opting out,” Laurie Turnbull, a political analyst and political science professor at Dalhousie University, told CTV News Channel on Saturday night.
“But it does provide an opportunity for people like Jean Charest or people like Scott Aichineon, who identify with a more centrist, moderate side of conservatism in Canada, to say, ‘Okay, look — some of the people who wanted to support Patrick Brown may find a reason to support me.
Patrick Brown was recently kicked out of the race after allegations surfaced that he broke funding rules. However, his name is still on the current ballot, opening questions about the verification processes of votes counted for candidates who were disqualified from the election races.
“What I can understand at this stage is that if there are ballots submitted for Patrick Brown, they will be thrown out and counted against the second preference if the person votes against the ballot,” Turnbull explained.
“But that would be an interesting thing to see: to what extent do people actually indicate their preferences after voting?” Not just for Patrick Brown, but for everyone.
But the next few months, she said, could bring some policy changes in the party.
“One of the conversations now is, are they going to have another debate to give an opportunity for what people want to do in their final decision?” Turnbull said.
“It’s difficult because most people have already decided who they want to vote for at this point.”
Ballots for the leadership election have now begun to be sent to members. The new leader will be announced on September 10.
Watch the full video with Laurie Turnbull at the top of this article.
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