The Conservatives will review their disappointing election loss, Erin O鈥橳oole said Tuesday as he underscored his commitment to ensuring the party is battle-ready for the next campaign.
鈥淲e鈥檝e started a process that will involve all parts of the party to make sure we learn those lessons to win the trust next time,鈥� he said at his party鈥檚 broadcast studio in downtown Ottawa, where he struck a less spirited tone than during his speech after the results came in.
鈥淚鈥檓 very, very proud of the gains we made, but we didn鈥檛 get far enough. We will next time.鈥�
No further details were provided about what the review would examine or its parameters.
There are still mail-in ballots being counted, but by Tuesday evening the Conservatives were projected to finish the contest with 119 seats and the Liberals returned to Parliament with another minority government.
O鈥橳oole made the effort to point out the election was not without its gains, pointing to the seats it picked up across Atlantic Canada after the region was swept by the Liberals in 2015.
鈥淔or the first time in a decade 鈥� back in Newfoundland and Labrador, some new members of our caucus from across the country, some new generation of talent, and we鈥檙e closer in dozens upon dozens of ridings, but not close enough,鈥� he said.
The Conservatives are currently projected to win fewer seats than former leader Andrew Scheer did in 2019 when his party reduced the Liberals to a minority but failed to oust them.
Scheer, a social conservative who was easily re-elected as a member of Parliament in Saskatchewan in Monday鈥檚 vote, stepped down as leader after the last election following an internal pressure campaign for him to leave.
Staying at the helm could prove a challenge for the current Conservative leader after he took risks with his base by moving the party more into the political centre for the chance to pick up seats in Ontario, which didn鈥檛 materialize.
O鈥橳oole had to answer for reversing his stance on positions such as protecting the conscience rights of health professionals from having to refer patients for services such as abortion or medical assistance in dying because of personal objections, which he pledged to do during his leadership race.
He acknowledged the party failed to win all the seats it wanted in areas such as Metro Vancouver, the Greater Toronto Area and in Quebec, which would have provided them with a path to victory.
The Conservative leader did say, however, the party came within 2,000 votes in 30 ridings and will work to close that gap.
鈥� The Canadian Press
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