Independent Toronto MP Kevin Vuong asks Poilievre to let him join Conservative caucus
![Kevin Vuong Independent Toronto MP Kevin Vuong says he is asking Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to let him join the Conservative caucus and intends to seek a nomination in a Greater Toronto Area riding. Vuong rises during Question Period, in Ottawa, Wednesday, March 23, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2024/5/24/kevin-vuong-1-6899777-1716574131018.jpg)
Independent Toronto MP Kevin Vuong says he is asking Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to let him join the Tory caucus, and intends to seek a nomination for the party in a Greater Toronto Area riding.
Vuong said in an interview Friday that he recently sent a letter to Poilievre and also informed the party's caucus chair, Ontario MP Scott Reid, of his wishes.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
"We have sent a formal letter to the leader of the Conservatives, expressing my desire to be able to join his caucus and work with him and his team," he said.
"It is my intention to seek a nomination for a riding in the (Greater Toronto Area)."
The MP for Spadina-Fort York ran as a Liberal candidate in the 2021 election, but the party dropped him days before the vote, saying he failed to inform them of a withdrawn sexual assault charge. Vuong still won the contest.
He said that while his time in the House of Commons got off to a "rough start," he thinks he has made an impact.
Vuong has voted alongside the Conservatives on a range of issues since joining the House of Commons, and said he took out a party membership last November.
But Conservative party spokeswoman Sarah Fischer said the Tories are not considering bringing him into caucus.
Asked whether he had spoken directly to Poilievre about his desire to join the group, Vuong said he hadn't — and that the extent of their relationship is that they sometimes cross paths outside the House.
"We say hi to one another as I think you would speak to any colleague."
Still, the Independent MP said on Friday that over the last year-and-a-half, he's had positive conversations with members of Poilievre's caucus about joining their parliamentary team.
"In the last year is when it really started to, I guess, accelerate in terms of folks actively saying, 'Hey, I think you should be a part of our caucus.' And I started to begin taking that very seriously as well," he said.
The MP also said his desire to seek a Conservative nomination doesn't hinge on him joining the caucus.
"One of the things that I think I really like about the party is they care about the grassroots," he said.
"And so my hope will be that I will have that grassroots support and from there, that grassroots support will show the party that, 'Hey, there are people within (the Greater Toronto Area) who support Kevin.'"
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 24, 2024
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6928617.1718492429!/httpImage/image.png_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.png)
Ottawa Food Bank receives largest donation in its 40-year history
210,000 pounds of food was delivered to the Ottawa Food Bank on Saturday, the largest donation in its 40-year history.
Your father’s diet before you were born could have affected your health, a new study suggests
Your father's diet before you were born could have played a role in your health, a new study has found.
Singh 'more alarmed than before' after reading full foreign interference report
Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he is 'even more alarmed than before' after reading the un-redacted report alleging there are MPs and senators who are participating to some degree in foreign interference efforts.
Prince William shares childhood photo of him and King Charles III for Father's Day
Prince William on Sunday shared a photograph showing him as a child with his father, King Charles III, to mark Father’s Day in the United Kingdom this year.
Clooney and Roberts help Biden raise US$30 million-plus at a star-studded Hollywood gala
Some of Hollywood's brightest stars headlined a fundraiser for U.S. President Joe Biden that took in a record US$30 million-plus for a Democratic candidate, according to his campaign, in hopes of energizing would-be supporters for a White House contest they said may rank among the most consequential in U.S. history.
A new tax filing system could give Canadians more than $1 billion in unclaimed benefits: PBO
Canadians would get more than $1 billion in unclaimed benefits each year through an automatic tax filing system, according to a report published by the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO).
Less than 10 per cent of homeless shelters N.S. promised last year currently in place
Nova Scotia has installed fewer than 10 per cent of the 200 shelters it promised to set up for the province's homeless residents more than eight months after first making the pledge.
No injuries reported after camper engulfed in flames in parking garage: Regina fire
A fire in an underground parking facility in Regina led to no injuries, according to the city's fire department.
'We're in pretty good shape': Calgary goes low in water consumption after state of local emergency declared
On a day that a local state of emergency was declared in Calgary, city residents answered a request from the mayor and emergency officials to use less water.