No review necessary: Crosbie gets full support from PCs heading into general election
Progressive Conservative leader Ches Crosbie has the full support of his party behind him heading into the upcoming, but yet to be announced, general provincial election.
A resounding vote of confidence came late Friday evening during the PC party's annual general meeting — now a hybrid in-person and online convention due to the COVID-19 pandemic — when a motion to decide if Crosbie's leadership should be reviewed was defeated.
"The general consensus was that we don't even need to have a vote," Eugene Manning, president of the PC Party of Newfoundland and Labrador, told CBC News on Saturday.
"Ches Crosbie is our leader. He's going to lead us into the next general election and we stand as one. We're a united party and he had very, very strong support in the room last night."
Crosbie stepped into his role after winning the Windsor Lake byelection in 2018. In December 2019, Crosbie asked the PC party to conduct a review of his leadership.
In a media release on Saturday morning, Manning said Crosbie had asked for a review of his leadership and argued that it should be a part of the democratic process of the party.
Among the topics of debate during the meeting was a new constitution for the party, which includes an automatic leadership review provision.
Manning said the the new constitution passed with an overwhelming majority vote, replacing the previous document, which had been in place since 1992.
West coast byelection
Looking ahead, the party is preparing for Tuesday's byelection in the Humber-Gros Morne district, where newly minted Premier Andrew Furey is running for his chance to get a seat in the House of Assembly.
Regular polls will be open in the district on Tuesday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. Advanced polls have already closed.
Mike Goosney will be representing the PCs to challenge Furey for the seat held by former premier and Liberal MHA Dwight Ball.
"We've knocked on a lot of doors, socially distanced of course, and Mike Goosney could be throwing a few surprises come Tuesday," said Manning.
Also running in Humber-Gros Morne is NDP candidate Graham Downey-Sutton and leader of the NL Alliance Graydon Pelley.
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