Christine Elliott has tightened her grip on the Progressive Conservative leadership race, luring one rival aboard her bandwagon and triggering doubts in another. Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli pulled the plug on his leadership campaign Wednesday and threw his support behind his Whitby—Oshawa colleague Elliott, the widow of late federal finance minister Jim Flaherty.

Christine Elliott, with Vic Fedeli at her Yonge. St. headquarters Wednesday, says she and Fedeli share the same ( Colin McConnell / Toronto Star ) Christine Elliott, seen here with Vic Fedeli at her Yonge. St. headquarters Wednesday, says she and Fedeli share the same values. ( Colin McConnell / Toronto Star )

Fedeli’s leaving and Friday’s deadline for the full $75,000 entry fee has Ottawa-Nepean MPP Lisa MacLeod rethinking her commitment to the race. MacLeod said she is reassessing her future given both Fedeli’s exit and the retirement of former foreign minister John Baird, which has opened up a federal seat in Ottawa. “I’m talking to constituents for next 48 hours. I’m being heavily pressured on federal side,” said the Nepean—Carleton MPP, mindful that the next non-refundable instalment to remain in the PC contest is looming.

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“I’ve got the money and memberships but I’m a local gal who knows who ‘brung me to the ball,’ too,” she said. Sources say the federal Tories are urging MacLeod to run in the newly created riding of Nepean. Fedeli, a wealth businessman from North Bay, told reporters he crunched the numbers — memberships and money — and “I don’t see them being there for me to win this leadership race.” The departure of Fedeli, a moderate like Elliott, leaves Monte McNaugthon (Lambton—Kent—Middlesex) in the contest along with Barrie MP Patrick Brown and a question mark beside MacLeod’s name. They are campaigning to replace Tim Hudak, who left as leader after his party’s disappointing performance — and loss of nine seats — in the June 12 election that vaulted Premier Kathleen Wynne’s minority Liberals to a majority.

“I believe Christine Elliott can go toe-to-toe with Kathleen Wynne and win he leadership race and win for the PCs in 2018,” he said. Elliott said she was both “excited and humbled” by Fedeli’s support.

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“Both of us understand that good economic policy enables good social policy. We also believe that fiscal responsibility and social compassion can and must go hand-in-hand,” she told the gathering. A source in a rival campaign said is clear that “Vic is making an ‘anybody-but-Brown’ play‎.” “Things are getting nasty.” Elliott refused to be drawn into the fray, saying only she has a different vision for Ontario than Brown. “We need to pull ourselves together, not divide ourselves as a party. It’s no longer a time for red Tory, blue Tory, social conservative or whatever,” she said. ‎Brown took a shot at Elliott, who was PC deputy leader, in the closing minutes of a leadership debate in London, Ont., last week for not knowing in advance about Hudak’s surprise campaign promise to cut 100,000 public sector jobs. Hudak’s controversial pledge — made at a Barrie campaign event attended by Brown — has been widely blamed for the party’s drubbing at the polls. The Conservatives pick a new leader at a Toronto convention May 9 with an eye toward topping Wynne’s Grits in the 2018 election. Despite governing Ontario for 50 of the past 75 years, the Tories have lost four consecutive elections to the Liberals.

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