News & Analysis

During the Conservative Party of Canada’s 2021 policy development process held about two years ago, which culminated in a final vote at the National Convention, many of our pro-life and pro-family policy resolutions failed to reach the Convention floor for an up or down vote by delegates.  

As a result, social conservative CPC delegates had far fewer good policies to vote for than in the previous Conventions. 

There were a few reasons why these family-friendly and pro-religious freedom policies failed to make it to the convention floor. However, one major factor was that a large majority of the 338 riding associations which cast ballots during an earlier phase of online voting, had socially liberal Presidents. 

Those Presidents carried significant influence on how the riding association voted on the hundreds of policies that were available to choose from.  

In some cases, these “red Tory” Presidents hoarded the voting decision unto themselves alone, and didn’t bother consulting their members, their Policy Committee, nor even the rest of the riding association’s Board members.  

Even more egregiously (and unethically), we learned from inside party sources, that in some ridings, the red Tory party establishment secretly voted in place of EDA Presidents where they knew the local President was not engaged. They just seized the opportunity. 

In the absence of an engaged President, they secretly cast ballots to help ensure that pro-life, pro-family policies did not end up ranking high enough to advance to convention. 

If enough social conservatives step forward to run for election as President in this upcoming 2023 policy development cycle, they can form the majority, and our favoured policy resolutions will easily make it to the convention floor for a final vote in Quebec City, during the September 7 – 9th, 2023 National Convention. 

A pro-life/family President can ensure that members are consulted and can vote for, and even submit, the policies that they like best. A pro-life/family President can block attempts to exclude socially conservative policies from being considered, simply by defending the democratic process in his or her own riding association. Finally, a pro-life/family President would rebuff any request from the red Tory party establishment to vote “how the Leader wants” instead of how their members want. 

Will you step up and run for President of your local CPC riding association at the next AGM? 

If not for President, how about for the position of the Policy Committee Chair? 

If not either of those influential positions, could you at least run as a board member "at large"?  

Canada needs you.