The division in the right stems from the 1993 election when the upstart Reform Party won significant support in the west, and the once powerful PCs were reduced to only two seats. The Reform Party had come into being in large part in opposition to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney's government in the 1980s. Western Canadians had strongly disliked his seeming pro-Quebec bias. They also viewed the Meech Lake Accord and Charlottetown Accord to not be in the west's interest.
It very quickly became apparent that with two right-wing parties unseating the the Liberals be near impossible. The Liberals have governed Canada since 1993 and which have never really been threatened by the divided right. Especially important to these thoughts was the province of Ontario. Since the 1993 election the Liberals have utterly dominated that province. Both Reform and the PC party received many votes, but because of the first past the post system this was not enough to win more than a couple of Ontario's 99 seats. At the same time the Ontario Provincial Conservatives, who were also closely linked to Reform had formed a popular provincial government in that province under Mike Harris.
This hope is considered unfounded by some, as polls have found that two thirds of Tory voters would vote for the Liberals before the Reform or Canadian Alliance parties. Some westerners also have deep concerns that the new party will be dominated by central Canada just as much as the old Tories were.
The Reform Party launched a number of efforts to try to convince the Tories to join with them, or to not run candidates in the same ridings. Being rebuffed by Tory leader Joe Clark the Reform Party eventually launched an effort on its own to untie the right. This became known as the United Alternative Movement which in 2000 lead to the creation of the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, more commonly known as the Canadian Alliance. The party with a new name and new leader in Stockwell Day, was still seen by many as unchanged from Reform.
After a below expectations result in the 2000 election the Canadian Alliance began sever in-fighting over the leadership of Stockwell Day. This lead to a number of disaffected Alliance MPs lead by Deborah Grey and Chuck Strahl to leave the Alliance caucus. They sat as the Democratic Representative Caucus and eventually decided to affiliate themselves with the Tories, sitting as one group in the House of Commons and holding joint meetings. After Day was replaced by Stephen Harper in 2001 this unity effort came to an end, however, and the DRC members returned to the Canadian Alliance.
The final union was eventually launched by Harper and Peter MacKay, who had controversially agreed only a few months earlier that no union would take place. Negotiations were conducted by a group of Tory and alliance notables including [[Don Mazankowski] and Bill Davis. The negotiations were motivated by the take over of the Liberal party by the extremely popular, and quite conservative Paul Martin and polls showed both the PC and Alliance parties losing a number of seats in teh next election.
The main sticking point was the method of choosing the nmerged party's leader. The Tories pushed for an equal number of votes for each riding, that would benefit thier much more national scope, the Alliance hoped for a one member on vote system that would benefit thier much larger membership. Eventually Harper conceeded the issue and the merger of the two parties was announced in late 2003.
The leader of the new party will be chosen in March of 2004. Very soon afterwards there will almost certainly be a election.
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