The first Progressive Conservative annual general meeting with Patrick Brown at the helm kicks off on Friday in Ottawa.
QP Briefing will have dispatches from the convention each day. Here's a few items we'll be keeping our eye on.
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Just one big happy family
A Toronto Star <a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2016/03/03/cohn-can-ontario-pcs-revive-the-big-blue-machine-amid-liberal-blues.html">column</a> this week on infighting in the PC caucus made a big impact, and party members are taking pains to reassure everyone that actually they're all best of friends and everything is peachy.
The most sensational revelation was a brewing battle between Ottawa-area MPPs Lisa MacLeod and Jack MacLaren. The Star's Martin Regg Cohn reported MacLaren is looking for a like-minded candidate (read: a libertarian and property-rights advocate) to challenge MacLeod for the 2018 election nomination, which would essentially repeat how MacLaren himself made it into caucus in 2011.
Cohn also said the Liberals made floor-crossing offers to MacLeod, who rebuffed them.
Later that day, MacLeod and MacLaren tweeted out that they would be co-hosting the opening ceremonies:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/MacLeodLisa">@MacLeodLisa</a> I'm looking forward to seeing all members from all across this great province gather in our nation's capital. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PCPO?src=hash">#PCPO</a>
— Jack MacLaren (@jackmaclaren1) <a href="https://twitter.com/jackmaclaren1/status/705445834981134336">March 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
Meanwhile, well-known pollster and organizer Nick Kouvalis was reported to be giving Brown the silent treatment after Brown engineered a deal that saw the Kouvalis-backed candidate for party president, Jag Badwal, drop out of the race to allow Brown's friend Rick Dysktra to take it by acclamation. (<a href="http://www.qpbriefing.com/2016/02/04/brokered-deal-will-see-former-mp-dykstra-acclaimed-as-pc-party-president/">See our earlier story.</a>)
Kouvalis tweeted his response:
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About <a href="https://twitter.com/reggcohn">@reggcohn</a> article today. I support <a href="https://twitter.com/brownbarrie">@brownbarrie</a> 100% &amp; will help him become Premier however he sees fit next election <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pcpo?src=hash">#pcpo</a>.... 1/2
— Nick Kouvalis (@NickKouvalis) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickKouvalis/status/705539835528871936">March 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PCPO?src=hash">#PCPO</a> is our family. Elbows go up at times, but still family. We are united &amp; will win the next election. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/All?src=hash">#All</a>.In <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/onpoli?src=hash">#onpoli</a> 2/2
— Nick Kouvalis (@NickKouvalis) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickKouvalis/status/705540624594935808">March 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
It remains to be seen whether the tensions will show up on the floor of the convention, but it all raises the question of whether Brown's leadership style runs the risk of  dividing loyalties within caucus.
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A new policy process
During the leadership race, Brown promised repeatedly to let the grassroots set the policy direction of the party, instead of a top-down process.
The PCs have been hard to pin down ideologically so far, with Brown only saying his policy stances will be guided by "what's good for Ontario," a standard that allows him to take pretty much any position he wants on any topic.
This weekend will be the first real step toward substantial policy development for the party, with a presentation scheduled on how party members will have input. At the next convention, we'll see how committed Brown really is to implementing the ideas the grassroots come up with.
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Federal Conservative leadership hopefuls curry support
There will be significant focus this weekend on federal Conservatives in attendance, looking to rally provincial support for a potential leadership run.
It's not necessarily an indicator of success, of course; people who were at the PC convention in 2004 recall the most popular hospitality suite belonged to federal leadership candidate Belinda Stronach, while there was comparatively little enthusiasm for her rival Stephen Harper. That didn't end well for Stronach.
A candidate to watch this time is Simcoe-Grey MP Kellie Leitch, who has already lined up significant Ontario PC support for a run. But Tony Clement, Lisa Raitt, and Maxime Bernier will also be vying for attention.
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A new look for the party?
Brown's strength is retail politics, networking relentlessly to bring new groups of people into the fold. That's how he won the leadership, and that's what he's promised to do in the run-up to the 2018 election.
Reporters will be watching this weekend to see what the membership looks like. How many young people are there? How many women? How many ethnic minorities?
The Globe and Mail also had <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/globe-politics-insider/ontario-pc-convention-may-be-overshadowed-by-clement-leitch-and-raitt/article29008799/">a good rundown</a> of the sponsors of various events this weekend, including the plumber and pipefitters union sponsoring a $10,000 dessert reception. That is the kind of thing you did not see when Tim Hudak was leader, and it's a key aspect of how Brown intends to grow the party's support base by 2018.

Four things to watch for at the PC convention

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