The 1987 founding convention of the Reform Party of Canada elected Preston Manning as party leader by acclamation. Manning was re-ratified as leader at every subsequent convention of the party without opposition. The Reform Party became the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (better known as the Canadian Alliance) in 2000 and had its first contested leadership election. Canadian Alliance leadership votes were conducted via a pure one member, one vote system in which each party member casts a ballot in the leadership election with each ballot having equal weight. In the CA's system a leader would be the candidate who receives 50% plus one of all votes cast (ie an absolute majority). If no candidate had an absolute majority on the first ballot the top two candidates would participate in a run-off with balloting occurring several weeks after the first ballot.

2000 Canadian Alliance Leadership Election

June 24 and July 8, 2000

First Ballot
DAY, Stockwell Burt 53249 (44.17%)
MANNING, Ernest Preston 43527 (36.10%)
LONG, Tom 21894 (18.16%)
MARTIN, Keith P. 1676 (1.39%)
STACHOW, John 211 (0.18%)
Total Ballots Cast 120557

Second Ballot
DAY, Stockwell Burt 72349 (63.4%)
MANNING, Ernest Preston 41869 (36.6%)
Total Ballots Cast 114218

2002 Canadian Alliance Leadership Election

March 20, 2002

First Ballot
HARPER, Stephen Joseph 48561 (55%)
DAY, Stockwell Burt 33074 (37.5%)
ABLONCZY, Diane 3370 (3.8%)
HILL, Grant 3223 (3.7%)
Total Ballots Cast 88228

See also: leadership convention