OTTAWA - The Conservative leadership race is heating up as MPs and senators gather in Halifax for a summer caucus beginning Tuesday morning.
The Tories will spend two days discussing how to tackle the Liberals when everyone returns to Parliament Hill on Sept. 19, but the nascent leadership race is expected to dominate discussions in the corridors as candidates seek support from their colleagues.
One hot topic is a proposal from the leadership campaign of Kellie Leitch, who wants to see the federal government screen potential immigrants and refugees for their views on what she is calling "Canadian values", such as the equality of men and women and tolerance for all religions, cultures and sexual orientations.
The idea has proven divisive, with candidates speaking out against it and even interim leader Rona Ambrose distancing herself.
Conservative MP Erin O'Toole, himself considering a leadership bid, says it will be important for caucus to remember the leadership race is about an exchange of ideas and avoid making things personal.
The Conservatives were shut out of Atlantic Canada when the Liberals won all 32 seats in the region last year, so holding the caucus meeting in Halifax is also meant as a way for the party to show it is ready to stand up for its voters.
Here's a glance at the party by the numbers:
97: Number of Conservative MPs, down from 159 at the dissolution of the last Parliament.
41: Number of Conservative senators.
0: Number of seats the Conservatives hold in Atlantic Canada.
14: Number of seats they won in the region in 2011.
5: Number of formally declared Conservative leadership candidates: Maxime Bernier, Michael Chong, Tony Clement, Kellie Leitch and Deepak Obhrai.
$5.07 million: Amount of money the Conservatives raised in the second quarter of this year, compared with $4.9 million for the Liberals and $1.08 million for the NDP.
