Manitoba Progressive Conservatives will have leadership race after 2 candidates officially authorized

The field is officially set for the race to determine the next leader of Manitoba's Official Opposition party.

Churchill hotelier Wally Daudrich and Fort Whyte MLA Obby Khan have both been officially approved as candidates to become the next leader of the Manitoba Progressive Conservative Party.

"I can confirm we have two authorized candidates," Brad Zander, the chair of the party's leadership election committee, told CBC News Saturday.  

The party launched its leadership race in June, giving potential candidates until Oct. 15 to register and submit their paperwork. The application packages were then to be reviewed by a seven-person committee, the party said in June.

The leadership election is set for April 25, 2025, to replace Heather Stefanson, who stepped down from the role last January.

She announced her intention to step down as leader in October 2023, after the PCs were defeated by the Manitoba NDP in the provincial election, and resigned as an MLA earlier this year.

Stefanson became PC Party leader in 2021, following the resignation of then premier Brian Pallister.

Lac du Bonnet MLA Wayne Ewasko has been serving as the party's interim leader.

The PCs said they opted to give candidates ample time to submit an application and campaign after the party's last leadership race, which saw Stefanson defeat Shelly Glover, was marred by complaints about an abbreviated election timeline.

Zander previously told CBC News Khan had been approved as a candidate, while Daudrich was still being vetted by the party's election committee when applications closed Oct. 15. 

That review involved a criminal background check and social media screening, Zander told CBC News at the time. 

Daudrich and Khan are expected to appear at an initial leadership event on Oct. 30 at the Delta Hotel, where they will be asked to lay out their vision for the party.