By Jason Malloy
TRURO DAILY NEWS
TRURO - Jamie Baillie would not ask a sitting MLA to resign to open up a seat for him if he becomes the Tory's next leader.
"I need all of their oars in the water rowing in the same direction with me and that is why I have no intention of asking any of them to do that," he told the Truro Daily News during a stop in his hometown on Monday.
He has not decided where he would run if he becomes leader, but said Truro-Bible Hill is an option. He won't make that decision until after the leadership contest.
Baillie is the only person to declare his intentions to seek the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia. People have until Aug. 16 to file their papers.
The fact he is the only one in the race hasn't impacted his run for public office.
"I am running a leadership campaign that is working very hard, just as hard with one candidate as if there were five candidates," Baillie said. "We've criss-crossed the province several times."
During his trips he is also sampling some of the province's fine food. That includes having one of the best cheeseburgers he's ever had at the Pictou Lions Club Saturday night as part of the Lobster Carnival, an omelet in St. Peter's and a strawberry supper in Greenwich.
During the launch of his campaign five weeks ago, Baillie said he believes politics is an important and honourable profession. While there have been things like the MLA expense scandal, that has impacted people's trust, Baillie said Nova Scotians he is talking to believe that is still true.
The CEO of Credit Union Atlantic said he has committed to restoring people's trust in the system.
"It's a big tough job," he said.
"My job isn't just to win the leadership and rebuild the Progressive Conservative Party, as important as those jobs are, it's also to make reforms to rebuild confidence in our entire political system."
