Conservative Party of Canada to hold 3rd leadership debate in August
OTTAWA—A third debate is in the works for the Conservative leadership race.Race organizers decided to green light a final faceoff in a meeting late Wednesday night, after polling party members last week to solicit their opinions. In a tweet Thursday morning, the party said 24,000 members responded to the survey, voting 65 per cent in favour of another event. “The Ayes have it!,” the party wrote. The party has around 675,000 members eligible to vote in the contest, with final numbers expected to be released by month’s end. Details are still being hammered out, but the event is expected to take place in early August, without a studio audience and be livestreamed online.Candidates Scott Aitchison, Roman Baber and Jean Charest had been publicly in support of getting another chance to face the members, but two — Leslyn Lewis and Pierre Poilievre — have been lukewarm to the idea.The original rules of the leadership contest provided for two official debates — one in English and the other in French — but organizers had always reserved the right to hold a third sometime before the end of August.Whether they were going to do it has been debated for months.Some race organizers were wary of the time, cost and effort involved at putting on an event at the same time as they were verifying membership sales, sending out ballots and beginning to process the returns.Others felt a debate at this stage of the race wouldn’t materially shift people’s choices. Thousands of ballots have already been sent back in.On the other side of the coin were those arguing the first two events were held early enough that candidates ought to face members again — an argument that was given new urgency after race organizers also turfed Patrick Brown from the contest earlier this month.He was disqualified over concerns that some of his campaign’s financial arrangements may be in violation of elections law.His removal has changed the calculus for campaigns — and for party members — as whomever was going to vote for him must now reconsider their plan.Throwing an official debate into the mix as candidates pivot their campaigns to get-out-the-vote mode will present a new challenge for campaigns as well; some candidates have been expecting to travel to hold voter sessions but will now have to down tools to prepare. Stephanie Levitz is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @StephanieLevitz
Tomas Kauer - Moderator 
OTTAWA—A third debate is in the works for the Conservative leadership race.
Race organizers decided to green light a final faceoff in a meeting late Wednesday night, after polling party members last week to solicit their opinions.
In a tweet Thursday morning, the party said 24,000 members responded to the survey, voting 65 per cent in favour of another event.
“The Ayes have it!,” the party wrote.
The party has around 675,000 members eligible to vote in the contest, with final numbers expected to be released by month’s end.
Details are still being hammered out, but the event is expected to take place in early August, without a studio audience and be livestreamed online.
Candidates Scott Aitchison, Roman Baber and Jean Charest had been publicly in support of getting another chance to face the members, but two — Leslyn Lewis and Pierre Poilievre — have been lukewarm to the idea.
The original rules of the leadership contest provided for two official debates — one in English and the other in French — but organizers had always reserved the right to hold a third sometime before the end of August.
Whether they were going to do it has been debated for months.
Some race organizers were wary of the time, cost and effort involved at putting on an event at the same time as they were verifying membership sales, sending out ballots and beginning to process the returns.
Others felt a debate at this stage of the race wouldn’t materially shift people’s choices. Thousands of ballots have already been sent back in.
On the other side of the coin were those arguing the first two events were held early enough that candidates ought to face members again — an argument that was given new urgency after race organizers also turfed Patrick Brown from the contest earlier this month.
He was disqualified over concerns that some of his campaign’s financial arrangements may be in violation of elections law.
His removal has changed the calculus for campaigns — and for party members — as whomever was going to vote for him must now reconsider their plan.
Throwing an official debate into the mix as candidates pivot their campaigns to get-out-the-vote mode will present a new challenge for campaigns as well; some candidates have been expecting to travel to hold voter sessions but will now have to down tools to prepare.
Stephanie Levitz is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @StephanieLevitz
