A group of British Columbia Conservative Party leaders and former candidates have become the latest voices calling for an end to John Rustad leadership, writing to party legislators to urge them to oust him.
Corey Brooks, president of the Burnaby North Riding Association, says in an interview that the party will “continue to lose” support and will not be competitive in the next election if Rustad remains Opposition Leader.
He says Rustad has “shockingly low personal favor”, membership and donations are declining and “morale is falling” among supporters.
Brooks is among 15 people who signed a November 7 letter asking Conservative MLAs to act with “courage and conviction” to “initiate a leadership renewal” to get Conservatives back on track.
Party President Aisha Estey and other members of the party's leadership committee called on Rustad to resign last month, but he refused, citing about 70 percent support among the 1,268 party members who voted in a leadership review that ended in September.
The party's constitution states that a leader can only be removed from office through resignation, death, incapacity or a leadership overhaul that results in less than 50 percent support.
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Brooks says that while the party board is “very important” to the party, local riding associations “have more connections to the grassroots”, which he calls the “lifeblood” of the party, and he hopes other local riding associations will support the letter.
Rustad did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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