Shake-up in Poilievre's office as chief of staff Ian Todd announces retirement

OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s longtime chief of staff Ian Todd is retiring, marking the latest of several recent departures of senior staffers in his office.

In a note sent to Conservative caucus members and Poilievre’s office, Todd said he would retire from his position at the end of this Parliamentary session. The House of Commons spring session is scheduled to end on June 19.

“While I am stepping away from this role, I remain fully committed to our leader and to the future of the movement. I look forward to the day when Pierre Poilievre serves as Prime Minister and Canada reaches its full potential once again,” Todd wrote in the note obtained by National Post.

Steve Outhouse, the Conservative Party’s current campaign manager, will be Poilievre’s new chief of staff.

Todd has been Poilievre’s chief of staff since the longtime MP was elected Conservative leader in 2022. Todd previously served in multiple other senior roles within the conservative movement over a nearly five-decade career, including as chief of staff to then-Alliance leader Stockwell Day and the Ontario government’s Representative to the United States.

“It is not easy to get off the saddle, but the time feels right. My journey in politics began as a young teenager, working on my first campaign, mopping floors, taking out the garbage, and knocking on doors alongside Peter Lougheed. I first came to Parliament Hill in 1992 with the visionary Preston Manning and a trailblazing group of determined Reformers,” he wrote in his retirement announcement.

Todd’s departure is the latest in a series by senior Poilievre staffers in recent months.

In early April, Poilievre’s director of communications Katy Merrifield left the office to go work on “passion” projects. She is now contributing to the campaign of B.C. Conservative leadership candidate Caroline Elliott.

Poilievre’s tour director Kate Harper also left the office recently.

National Post

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