Canada’s opposition Conservative Party votes to keep leader Pierre Poilievre
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Mr Pierre Poilievre speaking at the Conservative Party of Canada convention in Calgary, Alberta, on Jan 30.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Poilievre won 87.4% of votes in a leadership review after the Conservative defeat in April's election, surpassing the 75% goal to show party confidence.
- Trump's threats to make Canada a U.S. state boosted PM Carney's approval to 60%, uniting the country after Poilievre's early lead.
- Despite Poilievre's strong party support, 58% of the wider public view him unfavourably, according to pollster Angus Reid.
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OTTAWA - Canada’s opposition Conservative Party has voted overwhelmingly to retain Pierre Poilievre as its leader, after a leadership review was called following its defeat in a federal election.
The party said at a convention in the city of Calgary on Jan 31 that Mr Poilievre won 87.4 per cent of votes cast in the review mandated after the Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Mark Carney, defeated the Conservatives in the April 2025 election.
Under Mr Poilievre, the Conservatives had held a more than 20-point lead over the Liberals in January 2025, but US President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to make Canada the 51st US state united much of the country behind Mr Carney.
Mr Poilievre lost his own seat in the election but returned to Parliament after winning a by-election in August.
Before the leadership review, Mr Ashton Arsenault, a former ministerial staffer under ex-Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper, said Mr Poilievre should aim to win at least 75 per cent of the vote to demonstrate the party’s confidence in his leadership.
“That lets every outside observer and party member know that people are behind (Mr Poilievre) and this is the horse we’re riding with in the next election,” Mr Arsenault said.
According to the pollster Angus Reid, Mr Carney’s approval rating among Canadians is now at 60 per cent, his highest such rating since he became the Liberal leader.
Although 80 per cent of Conservative voters support Mr Poilievre, who is 46 and has been party leader since 2022, views of him among the wider public are more negative, with 58 per cent holding an unfavourable view of him. REUTERS
