PC party ponders a new direction — and a new leader — in wake of defeat
CBC
As Premier Susan Holt prepared to deliver her State of the Province speech last month, a handful of Progressive Conservatives were two blocks away, pondering the state of their political party.
Daniel Allain, a former PC minister dumped from cabinet in 2023 by then-premier Blaine Higgs, had invited what he called "like-minded New Brunswickers" to a reception at a Fredericton bar.
The "like-minded" people who responded were Tory stalwarts mulling over the direction of their party in the wake of October's election defeat.
Among them was Jeff Carr, another former PC minister dropped by Higgs in the same cabinet shuffle as Allain in June 2023.
The Fredericton gathering was the second Allain organized, after a "Blue Christmas" reception in Moncton in December.
"I like talking to people. I'm in the people business. I miss politics a little bit, so I want to be part of the renewal process," he said.
Allain acknowledged being part of that renewal may include running for the PC leadership.
"We'll see in the future but it's definitely something I'm interested in," he said.
The party hasn't set a date to choose its next leader.
A PC member in Saint John has proposed changing the leadership race voting system to give all 49 ridings in the province equal weight, as New Brunswick Liberals do.
Party president Erika Hachey has not responded to questions from CBC News about when that will be decided.
The party has other issues to resolve, including what direction it should take in the post-Blaine Higgs era.
"We've got to get some things straightened out," said Miramichi West MLA Mike Dawson, who believes the 16-member PC caucus he is part of at the legislature needs to pay more attention to grassroots members.
Dawson complained last fall when many members weren't notified in time to attend an annual general meeting held just after the election.
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