By Russ Campbell of Russ Campbell’s Blog

First round results of the PC Party of Ontario are now in. Tim Hudak leads with 3,512 votes, followed by Frank Klees with 3,094, Christine Elliott with 2,729 and Randy Hillier at 1,014. Hillier will now be removed from the ballot and his votes redistributed based on his supporters’ second choice.

I really did think that Christine Elliott would be in second place at this point, but I congratulate Frank Klees on such a strong first ballot showing. This will surely go to three rounds since none can win on the second ballot with even 100 per cent of Hillier’s vote. The second round will decide who will make it to the third and final ballot.

I believe Hudak will benefit the most from Hiller being dropped. Look for him to pick up about 700 former Hillier votes, moving him to the final round in a strong position to carry the day. Christine Elliott will benefit least from Hiller’s votes-about 100 votes or less. That leaves about 200 votes to go to Frank Klees.

The real question now looks to be: who will survive the second round?

National Post – Emily Senger

Markham Progressive Conservative Party leadership hopeful Randy Hillier has been dropped from the race after he came fourth in the first round of ballot counting at the PC Leadership Convention in Markham, Ontario today. After the first count, which was released late this morning, Tim Hudak is in first place with about 35 per cent of votes, followed by Frank Klees, with Christine Elliott in third.

No candidate has yet to get the more than 50 per cent of votes needed to become the new leader. PC Party members voted on either Sunday or Thursday in their home ridings and were asked to rank the candidates in first, second and third place. Second-place ballots will now be counted, with the final result announced later this afternoon.

The Results have come in:

107 of 107 ridings:

Hudak: 3511
Klees: 3093
Elliott: 2728
Hillier 1013

Ajax Pickering – Elliott wins
Algoma Manitoulin – Hudak wins
Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale – Hudak wins
Barrie – Hudak wins
Beaches-East York – Klees wins
Bramalea-Gore-Malton – Klees wins
Brampton Springdale – Klees wins
Brampton West – Klees wins
Brant – Hudak wins
Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound – Elliott wins
Burlington – Hudak wins
Cambridge – Klees wins
Carleton-Missippi Mills – Hillier wins
Chatham Kent Essex – Hudak wins
Davenport – 3-way tie (Hudak, Elliott, Klees)
Don Valley East – Klees wins
Don Valley West – Hudak wins
Dufferin-Caledon – Elliott wins
Durham – Elliott wins
Eglington Lawrence – Elliott wins
Elgin Middlesex London – Klees wins
Essex – Elliott wins
Etobicoke Centre – Klees wins
Etobicoke Lakeshore – Klees wins
Etobicoke North – Hudak wins
Glengarry-Prescott-Russell – Hillier wins
Guelph – Hudak wins
Haldimand-Norfolk – Hudak wins
Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock – Hudak wins
Halton – Hudak wins
Hamilton Centre – Hudak wins
Hamilton East-Stoney Creek – Hudak wins
Hamilton Mountain – Hudak wins
Huron Bruce – Klees wins
Kenora-Rainy River – Hudak wins
Kingston and the Islands – Elliott wins
Kitchener Centre – Klees wins
Kitchener Conestoga – Klees wins
Kitchener Waterloo – Elliott wins
Lambton Kent Middlesex – Klees wins
Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington – Hillier win
Leeds-Grenville – Hudak wins
London-Fanshawe – Hudak wins
London North Centre – Hudak wins
London West – Hudak wins
Markham-Unionville – Klees wins
Mississauga-Brampton South – Klees wins
Mississauga East Cooksville – Klees wins
Mississauga Erindale – Klees wins
Mississauga South – Klees wins
Mississauga Streetsville – Hudak wins
Nepean Carleton – Hudak wins
Newmarket Aurora – Klees wins
Niagara Falls – Hudak wins
Niagara West Glanbrook – Hudak wins
Nickel Belt – Klees wins
Nipissing – Hudak wins
Northumberland-Quinte West – Elliott wins
Oak Ridges-Markham – Klees wins
Oakville – Elliott wins
Oshawa – Elliott wins
Ottawa Centre – Hudak wins
Ottawa-Orleans – Hudak wins
Ottawa South – Hudak wins
Ottawa Vanier – Elliott wins
Ottawa West Nepean – Hudak wins
Oxford – Hudak wins
Parkdale-High Park – Klees wins
Parry Sound-Muskoka – Hudak wins
Perth-Wellington – Hudak wins
Peterborough – Elliott wins
Pickering-Scarborough East – Elliott wins
Prince Edward-Hastings – Hudak wins
Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke – Hudak wins
Richmond Hill – Klees wins
St Catharines – Hudak wins
St Paul’s – Elliott wins
Sarnia-Lambton – Hudak wins
Sault Ste Marie – Elliott wins
Scarborough-Agincourt – Hudak wins
Scarborough Centre – Klees wins
Scarborough Guildwood – Klees wins
Scarborough Rouge River – Klees wins
Scarborough Southwest – Klees wins
Simcoe-Grey – Hudak wins
Simcoe-North – Hudak wins
Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry – Elliott wins
Sudbury – Klees wins
Thornhill – Klees wins
Thunder Bay-Atikokan – Klees wins
Thunder Bay-Superior North – Hudak wins
Timiskaming-Cochrane – Hudak wins
Timmins-James Bay – Hudak wins
Toronto Centre – Elliott wins
Toronto Danforth – Elliott wins
Trinity Spadina – Hudak wins
Vaughan – Hudak wins
Welland – Hudak wins
Wellington-Halton Hills – Elliott wins
Whitby-Oshawa – Elliott wins
Willowdale – Klees wins
Windsor-Tecumseh – Hudak wins
Windsor West – Elliott wins
York Centre – Klees wins
York Simcoe – Klees wins
York South Weston – Elliott wins
York West – Elliott wins

By Utsav Sanduja

The 2009 Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario Leadership Race will be a one remembered for the ages. Never have we seen so many distinct ideologies compete for the top job of our party, and the best part of it all was that not one bit of it was really as personal as the other parties have traditionally experienced.

This being my first Progressive Conservative Leadership race, I have to say I have had the great honour of working with the Tim Hudak campaign and while a number of my friends were on the other side of me, we still had a great cordial relationship. It was an intellectual debate of ideas, policy and a vision for Ontario, one that was based on legitimate democratic issues, rather than the same old dirty politics of character assassination witnessed in other political parties.

Throughout the leadership race, I met with various candidates, even candidates I hadn’t been supporting, to discuss with them how to improve our province. Randy Hillier will always be the soul of the conservative party and had told me personally when I had met him after the Ottawa debate; “I’ve been living in this province in the last 51 years, I have been fighting all my life for conservative values and guess what – I’m not leaving after this.”

I had spoken to many Frank Klees supporters, such as young Steven Badger a grassroots conservative and we mutually agreed on the need to reform health care. My favourite moments in the campaign that I heavily enjoyed and savoured were my debates with a long series of libertarians on Facebook ranging from Hugh MacIntyre, Ken Dubien, Alex Sloat and Steve Lafleur – all great friends of mine who at the end of day as they supported Christine Elliott for her flat tax proposal, presented fair arguments on their support for her.

I really enjoyed this leadership race a great deal and look forward to working with the next leader of our party and putting my full commitment to our next future Progressive Conservative Premier of Ontario!