Pierre Poilievre draws huge crowds amid Conservative party leadership race

As of Saturday, Conservative party leadership candidates have under two months left to sign up members before the June 3 deadline.

With 10 days left for candidates to enter the Conservative party leadership race –and 20 before $300,000 worth in fees are due– what’s capturing the attention of those watching as of late are the crowds.

More specifically, who’s drawing them in and who isn’t.

Pierre Poilievre would fall into the first category, as the longtime Ottawa-area MP has been consistently appearing before massive groups of people at rallies across the country.

“The sort of draw that he has to bring people out is unprecedented,” said Connor Hollingshead, president of the Conservative campus club at Simon Fraser University, who says he’s not endorsing anyone.

Poilievre recently spoke to students in Vancouver at an event co-hosted with Conservatives at the University of British Columbia. Later that Thursday, he addressed a rally crowd that his campaign said swelled to more than 1,000.

Staying late to smile for photos and greet those who waited out long lines to meet him has also been a common occurrence at events _ as has selling memberships.

Signing up new members and then doing the followup work to make sure they fill out their ballots correctly and mail everything in on time is what successful leadership campaigns are about.

As of Saturday, candidates have under two months left to sign up members before the June 3 deadline.