Hastings-Lennox and Addington MP Derek Sloan has announced his intention to run to become leader of the Conservative Party Wednesday.
“There’s a lot of issues in our riding that need to get national attention,” he tells Moose FM. He says things like affordable housing and rural economic development affect those in his riding and he wants to bring those issues to the forefront of the leadership race. “The great thing about running for leader is I can submit an editorial to almost any major newspaper and get it published,” he adds.
Sloan he’s “in it to win it” but, at the very least, he can get media coverage on these local issues. “There’s going to be lots of different ways to get these issues out there,” he continues.
“There’s a time to play it safe, and there’s a time to go bold,” Sloan says when asked if he’s making the jump from MP to the potential leader of his party too quickly. Thus far he says there’s a variety of people in the running, with some having no parliamentary experience, but lots of life experience, while it’s the opposite with others. “I’m kind of in the middle,” Sloan says. He adds that he could bide his time, but there are issues affecting those in his riding that need to be talked about now.
Sloan didn’t get into the specifics when it came to policy but did not he will begin releasing that in the coming weeks.
“We’re going to do whatever we can to win,” Sloan says. He adds that he believes the race is “open.”
The Conservative Party has set February 27th as the first deadline for candidates hoping to run to lead the party. To be eligible to continue, a candidate must come up with $25,000 and 1,000 signatures from party members. The party will vote on who will be its next leader on June 27th.