B.C. Conservative Urges Poilievre to ‘Unite, Not Divide’ After Leadership Race Comments

Olivia Singh

7/10/20262 min read

The runner-up in the recent B.C. Conservative leadership race is urging federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to avoid divisive comments after he appeared to take aim at her campaign.

In a video posted to social media Thursday, Caroline Elliott said she has been a lifelong Conservative and a personal supporter of Poilievre.

Elliott said she voted for him in his federal Conservative leadership race, encouraged family and friends to donate to him, attended events, knocked on doors and defended him online.

“So your MPs, and now you personally, celebrating my defeat in the B.C. Conservative leadership race is disappointing,” Elliott said in the video. “The race is over and it's time to unite, not divide.”

Poilievre Praised Findlay’s Victory

Elliott’s comments came in response to remarks Poilievre made at a Calgary Stampede event over the weekend.

During the event, Poilievre acknowledged Kerry-Lynne Findlay, his former federal caucus colleague, who defeated Elliott in the B.C. Conservative leadership contest.

Findlay won the race in May on the fourth ballot.

Poilievre described her victory as a “big win against liberal lobbyists from out east.”

The comment was widely interpreted as a reference to Elliott’s campaign manager, Kory Teneycke.

Comment Seen as Shot at Campaign Manager

Teneycke previously ran successful campaigns for Ontario Premier Doug Ford before joining Elliott’s leadership team.

Tensions between Poilievre’s team and Ford’s camp became public during last year’s federal election campaign, when Teneycke criticized the Conservative campaign and argued the party would lose unless Poilievre shifted his messaging to focus more on U.S. President Donald Trump.

Peazzi reached out to Poilievre’s office for comment on Elliott’s remarks.

Elliott Calls for Conservative Unity

Anthony Koch, who worked on both Elliott’s campaign and Poilievre’s 2022 federal leadership bid, shared Elliott’s video and called her “the ultimate class act.”

In her post, Elliott said she had been in the backcountry for a few days and only had a chance to respond Thursday.

She said politics should be about addition, not subtraction, and about putting the public interest ahead of personal disputes.

“I'll keep fighting every day to bring people together for the future of my province and our country,” Elliott said. “I just hope you decide to do that, too.”

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