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?

By Russ Campbell of Russ Campbell’s Blog

We are hours from closing the polls and days from knowing who will lead our party in the Legislature and into the 2011 election. As I see it, the stakes could not be higher for the PC Party of Ontario.

I am encouraged by the quality of the four leadership candidates and by the high level of interest and enthusiasm they generated throughout the race. Their campaigns were short but intense; their debate thought-provoking.

Shrewd and creative use of “new media” have been hallmarks of this campaign. Twitter and Facebook as well as more traditional Web pages were utilized extensively. No longer did party members have to depend on the mainstream media to provide knowledge about the candidates. Access to the candidates was open to all with an e-mail account or a web browser. Internet-savvy members could converse directly with fellow supporters and debate the issues with adversaries.

This bodes well for when next we take on Mr. McGuinty. Here’s to victory in 2011!