2004 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election
The 2004 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election took place on March 20, 2004, in Toronto, Ontario, and resulted in the election of Stephen Harper as the first leader of the new Conservative Party of Canada. The Conservative Party was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, in December 2003.
Stephen Harper, the former leader of the Canadian Alliance, was elected on the first ballot. Tony Clement, a former Ontario Progressive Conservative health minister, and Belinda Stronach, the former Chief Executive Officer of Magna International, were the other candidates on the ballot.
The leader was selected by a system in which each of the party's riding associations was allocated 100 points, which were allocated among candidates in proportion to the votes that he or she received. This system was selected as a condition of the merger, to prevent the far larger Canadian Alliance membership base from overwhelming that of the Progressive Conservatives.
Members voted using ranked ballots. If no candidate won a majority of votes on the first ballot, the ballots supporting the candidate with the smallest number of votes would be re-distributed according to the voters' second preferences. Subsequent ballots were not needed, however, because Stephen Harper won on the first ballot.
Candidates
[Tony Clement]
42, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario Member of Provincial Parliament for Brampton South, provincial Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, provincial Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, provincial Minister of the Environment, provincial Minister of Transportation, third place candidate in Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario leadership electionCaucus Endorsements
- MPs: Gerald Keddy, Chuck Strahl, Norman Doyle, Art Hanger, Peter Goldring
- Senators: Brenda Robertson, Wilbert Keon
[Stephen Harper]
Caucus Endorsements
- MPs: Jim Abbott, Diane Ablonczy, Rob Anders, David Anderson, Roy Bailey, Leon Benoit, Garry Breitkreuz, Andy Burton, Chuck Cadman, Rick Casson, Dave Chatters, John Duncan, Reed Elley, Ken Epp, Brian Fitzpatrick, Paul Forseth, Jim Gouk, Gurmant Grewal, Dick Harris, Jay Hill, Betty Hinton, Rahim Jaffer, Dale Johnston, Jason Kenney, Gary Lunn, James Lunney, Philip Mayfield, Grant McNally, Rob Merrifield, Bob Mills, James Moore, Deepak Obhrai, Brian Pallister, Charlie Penson, James Rajotte, Scott Reid, John Reynolds, Gerry Ritz, Werner Schmidt, Carol Skelton, Monte Solberg, Kevin Sorenson, Darrel Stinson, Greg Thompson, Myron Thompson, Vic Toews, Maurice Vellacott, Randy White, John Williams, Lynne Yelich
- Senators: Gerry St. Germain, David Tkachuk
[Belinda Stronach]
Caucus Endorsements
- MPs: Gary Schellenberger, Bill Casey, John Cummins, Val Meredith, Loyola Hearn, Rex Barnes, Inky Mark
- Senators: David Angus, Ethel Cochrane, Consiglio Di Nino, John Trevor Eyton, J. Michael Forrestall, Noël Kinsella, Pierre Claude Nolin, John Buchanan, Gerald Comeau, Donald Oliver, Marjory LeBreton, Pat Carney, Leonard Gustafson
Announced they would not run
- Scott Brison - Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament
- Mike Harris - former Premier of Ontario
- Ralph Klein - Premier of Alberta
- Bernard Lord - Premier of New Brunswick
- Peter MacKay - former Progressive Conservative Party Leader
- Brian Pallister - Canadian Alliance Member of Parliament
- Jim Prentice - Progressive Conservative 2003 leadership race runner up, later Premier of Alberta
- Bob Runciman - former Ontario public security minister
- Larry Smith - Publisher of the Montreal Gazette
- Chuck Strahl - Canadian Alliance Member of Parliament
Results
Each of 308 ridings had 100 points which were distributed by proportional representation according to votes cast by party members in the riding.
Total expenses
- Belinda Stronach $2,496,482
- Stephen Harper $2,073,084
- Tony Clement $826,807
Timeline
December 2003
- December 5 - The Canadian Alliance votes with a 96% majority in favour of merging with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.
- December 6 - The Progressive Conservative Party votes, with 90% of delegates in favour of merging with the Canadian Alliance.
- December 8 - The Conservative Party of Canada is officially registered with Elections Canada. The party's first interim leader is Senator John Lynch-Staunton, with a formal leadership race scheduled for March 2004.
- December 10 - Scott Brison, Progressive Conservative MP, crosses the floor, and sits with the Liberal Party of Canada. Brison is the fourth PC MP, out of an original caucus of 15, to decide not to sit with the new Conservative Party of Canada.
- December 30 - Bernard Lord, Premier of New Brunswick, reconfirms that he will not seek the leadership of the Conservative Party. He had been considered a potential frontrunner.
January 2004
- January 12 - Stephen Harper announces his entry into the race to lead the new Conservative Party of Canada. Earlier that day, Jim Prentice drops out of the leadership contest, citing a lack of funds.
- January 13 - Peter MacKay declares he will not enter the race to lead the new Conservative Party of Canada.
- January 15 - Auto parts magnate Belinda Stronach and former Ontario Health Minister Tony Clement both announce their intention to run for leadership of the Conservative Party.
- January 16 - Fraser Valley MP Chuck Strahl announces he will not seek the Conservative leadership, citing financial barriers.
- January 20 - Belinda Stronach formally announces the launch of her campaign to seek the Conservative leadership. She rounds out the field at three; no other serious contenders are now seen as planning an entry.
March 2004
- March 19 - The leadership convention opens in Toronto; the candidates give opening speeches.
- March 20 - Stephen Harper wins on the first ballot with 56% of points, under the party's weighted voting system.
- March 22 - Harper names former PC leader Peter MacKay the deputy leader of the Conservative party.
Breakdown by province
| Province | Clement | Harper | Stronach | Total |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 102 | 231 | 369 | 702 |
| Prince Edward Island | 41 | 85 | 272 | 398 |
| Nova Scotia | 110 | 409 | 582 | 1,101 |
| New Brunswick | 51 | 461 | 492 | 1,004 |
| Quebec | 452 | 2,506 | 4,538 | 7,496 |
| Ontario | 1,672 | 6,035 | 2,891 | 10,598 |
| Manitoba | 72 | 1,029 | 299 | 1,400 |
| Saskatchewan | 51 | 1,141 | 208 | 1,400 |
| Alberta | 81 | 2,380 | 346 | 2,807 |
| British Columbia | 230 | 2,878 | 492 | 3,600 |
| Yukon | 6 | 62 | 32 | 100 |
| Northwest Territories | 9 | 53 | 39 | 101 |
| Nunavut | 17 | 28 | 56 | 101 |
| Total | 2,894 | 17,298 | 10,616 | 30,808 |