With only four days before nominations close, the Progressive Conservative leadership race still features only one horse.
Nominations close on Monday at 5 p.m., and as of Thursday, Credit Union Atlantic CEO Jamie Baillie is the only candidate.
Baillie does not currently hold a seat in the legislature, but with a byelection looming in Tory stronghold Cumberland South, that may not be the case for long.
Progressive Conservative president Rob Batherson said it is difficult to say whether anyone else will throw their hat in the ring.
“You just never know … either we get an extra set of nomination papers and a cheque representing a $25,000 deposit or we don’t,” he said. “We’ll keep the office open and see who comes in.”
Batherson said he doesn’t think one name on the ballot signifies a lack of interest in the position, saying the party is in a rebuilding phase.
No seat
Party President Rob Batherson remembers what it meant for the Liberals to have an unelected party leader in Francis MacKenzie. But he doesn’t think Baillie, if chosen, will face the same difficulties.
• History “I think if you look back in Nova Scotia history there have been examples of party leaders that, when they were elected, didn’t have a seat in caucus,” he said, citing Robert Stanfield and Gerald Reagan. “I think every circumstance is different, and I think you have to judge leadership candidates … on the merit of the skills, abilities and experiences that they bring forward.”
