New Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole has a long road ahead if he's going to try pulling votes from competing parties, according to CTV News' political analyst Scott Reid.
O'Toole emerged to replace outgoing leader Andrew Scheer Sunday with 57 per cent of the vote. Reid says O'Toole pulled away from his historically moderate stance on several issues to defeat rival Peter MacKay.
"He won because the social conservatives, the people who are against abortion, against same sex marriage, all that kind of stuff, they came to him and didn't go to Peter McKay," says Reid.
He tells AM800's The Morning Drive O'Toole is going to have a tough time winning over Liberal and NDP voters.
"He's won this thing on the back of hard right socially conservative platform and now he's going to have to say to people, 'that was all then, now I'm much more moderate and much more presentable, don't worry about any of that, I'm not going to be crazy if you elect me,'" he added.
Reid says the loss likely marks the end of McKay's career in politics.
"He was essentially pushed out when they did the merger of the two parties back in 2005 and now we've seen this unsuccessful leadership run," says Reid. "I don't want to dance on the guy's grave, but I don't think we'll be seeing him in elected politics again."
O'Toole's campaign slogan, Take Canada Back, is trending on social media with many comparing it to U.S. President Donald Trump's Make America Great Again slogan.