(Warning: This article is about the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party leadership race, which is dramatically changing on an almost hourly basis in ways no mortal human can possibly comprehend or predict. So by the time this goes online everything you're about to read might be totally irrelevant. )
The Ontario PC leadership race is the most amazing, most spectacular and most incredible piece of political theatre ever witnessed in Canadian history.
Or to put that another way, it's the Game of Thrones of politics!
And one thing that makes it so fascinating are the marvelous characters starring in the show.
To show you what I mean, here's a brief rundown of the cast:
Caroline Mulroney
With her esteemed political pedigree, her sophisticated charm and her sterling private sector background, Mulroney is the closest thing the PCs have to an aristocrat. And that makes her the most intriguing candidate in the race since she offers the party everything it needs, except for one tiny, little thing: political experience, of which she has zero. Nevertheless, if you believe all conspiracy theories floating around, she's the handpicked candidate of the party's shadowy elites.
Doug Ford
Like Mulroney, Ford has a famous last name; but that's where the similarities end. If Mulroney is a princess, Ford is a blustery, brawny, brawling, bruiser. A born street-fighter, Ford offers a tough-talking brand of populism that will appeal not only to the Legions of Ford Nation, but also to the growing number of Progressive Conservatives who simply want to "stick it" to the system. And if you believe all the conspiracy theories floating around that's why the shadowy party elites will do everything they can to stop him. Yet, Ford has seemingly at least one well-known fan among the elites: according to certain media reports, Premier Kathleen Wynne wants him to win the leadership. It reminds of how Hillary Clinton reportedly wanted Donald Trump to win.
Christine Elliott
Elliott's vast political experience along with her deep ties to the Ontario PC party makes her the most "normal" leadership candidate in this race, which ironically also makes her an oddity. Working in her favour, however, is that she has the clearest path to victory. If for any reason, PC party members perceive the other candidates to be too "far off the wall", they will likely give their vote to the most boring and dull candidate on the slate, i.e. Elliott. Don't laugh; this is how Andrew Scheer won his race.
Tanya Granic Allen
I have no idea who this person is, but what I do know is she's giving a feisty voice to social conservatives, a group, which over the past year the PC party has seemingly done everything it could to actively alienate. So it looks like the Christians are striking back.
Patrick Brown
OK, now we've come to what's easily the weirdest leadership candidacy ever. Consider that just weeks ago, Brown's political career was in ruins, his reputation in tatters; scorned by the party he once led, he seemed to be on the road to oblivion. Yet, in an incredibly short period of time, through clever media management, Brown has, at least to some degree, rehabilitated his image. Basically, he's gone from "Sad loser" to "Scrappy underdog". And "Scrappy Underdog" is not a bad image for any politician. At any rate, if he wins, it'll be the most incredible comeback since Lazarus.
So with all these quirky, unconventional and atypical candidates crowding the PC leadership stage, who knows what plot twists and surprises; what thrills and chills; what conflicts and dramas await us as the narrative unfolds.
And yes, some might say the whole spectacle is a political disaster of the first magnitude.
But disasters attract attention, which might ultimately work to the PC party's advantage.
In other words, the PC leadership race will test that age old public relations maxim which states "any publicity is good publicity."
Photo Credit: Toronto Star