Massive crowd greets Conservative Party leadership contender Poilievre in Windsor-Essex

Conservative Party of Canada leadership hopeful Pierre Poilievre speaks to a full house at the Ciociaro Club in Oldcastle, Ont. on March 28, 2022. (Rich Garton / CTV Windsor)

Conservative member of parliament Pierre Poilievre came to Windsor-Essex Monday, looking to drum up support in his bid to become the next leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.

The leadership tour wound through southwestern Ontario Monday, stopping in Kitchener and London before finishing up with a packed house at the Ciociaro Club in Oldcastle, Ont.

An estimated 1,200 people attended Monday’s rally in Oldcastle where supporters turned out to hear Poilievre’s ideas for the country, which included eliminating the deficit, cancelling the carbon tax and reforming tax policy.

“If you are a working-class wage earner, like the countless manufacturing workers in places like Windsor, the people who literally build the nation watch their wages evaporate in power as the purchasing power is diminished by inflation,” Poilievre said the the room of supporters. “It is a way of transmitting wealth from the have-nots to the have-yachts in this country.”

“And that’s what we’re going to reverse. We’re going to bring forward a policy that protects the value of the money that honours the wages of the workers and allows people to keep the fruits of their labour in this country.”

Pierre Poilievre poses for a photo with a supporter after his federal Conservative leadership rally in Oldcastle, Ont. on March 28, 2022. (Rich Garton / CTV Windsor)

Mr. Poilievre was not available for media questions after the event, but did stick around for a few hours taking pictures and shaking hands with supporters.

The leadership candidate drew many rounds-of-applause from spectators, regularly throwing barbs at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over the cost of living, the inflation rate and the current housing crisis.

Poilievre ended his speech by making a plea to the crowd to sign up for party membership so they can cast their ballot for him at the leadership convention.

Essex MP Chris Lewis has gone on record as a supporter of Poilievre’s leadership campaign and says the Carleton MP has what it takes to be Canada’s next prime minister.

“The energy in the room tonight at the Ciociaro club was just fantastic and it really goes to show that folks are sick and tired of being sick and tired of the current government and they’re looking for change,” said Lewis. “They’re looking for some positive energy and they’re looking for a reason to get excited, for a reason to get out of bed in the morning with a bounce in their step.”

Poilievre is running against a handful of other candidates to replace former opposition leader Erin O’Toole as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, including Leslyn Lewis, Patrick Brown, Jean Cherest, Roman Baber, Joseph Bourgault, Bobby Singh, Marc Dalton, Leona Alleslev and Scott Aitchison.

The deadline to announce leadership candidacy is April 19 and the deadline to sign up as a new member of the CPC is June 3.

Ballots will go out to Conservative party members in late July or early August, with the the leadership election date scheduled for Sept. 10, 2022.