By Mia Rabson
December 13 2019
OTTAWA — Signs began to emerge Friday that the coming race to replace outgoing Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer will be an acid test for whether social conservatives have a place in the Conservative Party of Canada.
But difficult as that discussion could be for the party, an even nastier, more personal fight is threatening to unravel the party’s governance structure. At the centre of it is executive director Dustin Van Vugt, whose status as the party’s chief operating officer was in limbo Friday night.
For weeks since the October election, Scheer has been hammered by progressives in the party who say his unclear positions on social issues like abortion and his refusal to fully stand up for LGBTQ rights contributed heavily to the party’s defeat in October.
Many demanded his resignation, insisting the Conservatives will not win in Ontario and Quebec if they can’t put up a leader who will march comfortably, and be welcome, in Pride parades.
But Scheer’s reluctance, and many times refusal, to explain his position on abortion or why he won’t attend events to stand up for LGBTQ rights, was not what finally pushed him out the door. It was instead, an agreement between him and Van Vugt to have the party pay to send Scheer’s kids to a private Ottawa Catholic school.
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