PIERRE, FAIR AND SQUARE

Tory boss reaching out to rivals and ex-leaders.

For a man who’s supposedly divisive and ripping apart the Conservative party, Pierre Poilievre seems to be building a lot of bridges. It’s been two weeks since he won the conservative leadership, taking 68% of the points, but he’s made time to reach out to rivals and past leaders in that time.

His efforts so far have surprised and impressed one-time critics.

Poilievre reached out to Jean Charest’s camp shortly after the race ended, culminating in a phone call with Charest himself. A close adviser of Charest described it as a cordial chat, and Poilievre made it clear that anyone working on Charest’s team is still welcome within the party – including those looking for a staff job in Poilievre’s office.

This hasn’t always happened after leadership races. It was famously divisive between Andrew Scheer and Maxime Bernier after the 2017 leadership race, and Erin O’Toole’s team froze out people who worked for Peter MacKay after winning in 2020.

Two weeks ago, Poilievre met with O’Toole and even asked for advice. Reports claim that the two men listened to each other  and compared notes with respect.

Last Monday night, not long after the official ceremony in Ottawa to mark the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, an important if unofficial dinner happened. Pierre Poilievre and his wife hosted Brian and Mila Mulroney.

There’s been an ongoing narrative that Poilievre wouldn’t be able to attract old school Mulroney- era  Tories, yet here was the former PM dropping in at Stornoway (the official residence of the Opposition Party). The dinner lasted much longer than expected with both couples enjoying getting to know each other.

For Poilievre, to not only bridge that divide, but to do it so early, speaks well for his chances of bringing together sometimes warring factions of the Conservative movement and will make it hard to claim there’s a divide between Poilievre and old PC members.

Mulroney, the most successful prime minister in Canadian history when measured by seats won, remains a master orator, a great campaigner and well-connected . He can open up Quebec Inc., as it is often called, to Poilievre and his team.

The Conservatives shouldn’t be hiding old leaders come election time; they should be bringing them out like the Liberals have with Chretien. Having Mulroney onside in Quebec or Atlantic Canada – even in Toronto business circles – can do wonders for Poilievre.

Speaking of Atlantic Canada, Poilievre also reached out to Mackay, co-founder of modern Conservative party and a former PC leader and Harper cabinet minister.

MacKay still maintains a strong network not just in Nova Scotia but across the Maritimes. It would be wise for Poilievre to nurture these relationships, to draw on those networks as he builds a team to try and to beat Trudeau.

Among the many people who have been involved in these meetings, some still have concerns. They are impressed with what has happened, but given the tone of the leadership campaign  and it’s elbows up aggressive style, are taking a bit of a wait and see approach.

That’s understandable if you’ve been on the receiving end of one of those swipes, but what we’ve learned over the past few weeks is that when Poilievre began extending the olive branch in his victory speech on Sept. 10^th, it was not an empty gesture. He’s been following through and making peace with people he has done battle with  and people who expressed reservations about his leadership or tone.