He will become at least the eleventh person to claim the replacement of former party leader Erin O’Toole. Alleslev, a former Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill MP, was first elected to the House of Commons as a Liberal in 2015. It sparked a political storm when it crossed the floor to join the opposition Conservatives in 2018, citing a series of disagreements with the Liberal government over its handling of the economy, tax reform, foreign affairs, trade relations and military spending. Alesslef, 54, is the only lawmaker to leave the government of Prime Minister Justin Trinto for another party. As a Conservative candidate, she was re-elected in the 2019 election and served as deputy leader under Andrew Scheer from 2019 to 2020. She was defeated in Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill last year by Liberal candidate Leah Taylor Roy. The perceived top candidates in the race so far (from left to right): Leslyn Lewis, Patrick Brown, Jean Charest and Pierre Poilievre. (Sean Kilpatrick, Chris Young, Justin Tang, Adrian Wyld / The Canadian Press)
Alleslev signaled her hopes of taking part in the Twitter contest in late March and now appears to have garnered the support of at least 500 members of the Conservative Party – a requirement set by the Election Organizing Committee for all candidates. Alleslev is a graduate of the Royal Military College and served in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He also worked in the Department of Defense and the private sector for IBM and Bombardier before entering politics in 2015.

The time for candidates to pay the entrance fee is running out

Those hoping to become the next Conservative leader must also raise at least $ 300,000 – a $ 200,000 entry fee plus a $ 100,000 compliance deposit. Haldimand-Norfolk MP Leslyn Lewis announced Monday that she has achieved her $ 300,000 fundraising goal. Lewis finished third in the Conservatives’ 2020 leadership race thanks to strong support from the party’s social conservative wing. This charge is required in installments and is linked to access to party membership lists. No other candidate – including pioneering champions Pierre Poilievre and Jean Charest – has publicly stated that he has received the full amount required to run. Patrick Brown, another high-profile candidate, has not yet paid the initial $ 50,000 fee required to qualify as a candidate. on the Conservative Party website. The field of candidates will be locked on April 29, the date on which all candidates must pay the total of $ 300,000. Ontario Independent MP Roman Baber, Conservative MPs Marc Dalton and Scott Aitchison, businessmen Joseph Bourgault and Bobby Singh and former Conservative candidate Joel Etienne have also announced plans to run. The party will elect its next leader at a congress on September 10.