The 1993 Progressive Conservative leadership election was held on June 13, 1993 to choose a leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada and hense, Prime Minister of Canada, with Kim Campbell winning the vote in the second ballot, and hence becoming the first female Prime Minister on June 25, 1993. Initially, Campbell's popularity caused very few prominent Progressive Conservatives to enter the race, with Michael Wilson, Perrin Beatty, Barbara McDougall, and Joe Clark not making expected runs. Jean Charest had to be convinced to run by Brian Mulroney, but once in the race, he ran an energetic campaign directed by established party organizers loyal to Mulroney, who would later lead the 1993 federal election campaign team. That turned the race from a coronation into a divisive grass roots battle for delegates.

Candidates

Patrick Boyer

MP for Etobicoke—Lakeshore, Ontario (1984–1993) Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretary of State for External Affairs (1989-1991) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence (1991-1993) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry, Science and Technology (1993)

Kim Campbell

MP for Vancouver Centre, British Columbia (1988–1993) BC Social Credit MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey (1986-1988). Minister of Justice (1990-1993) Minister responsible for Federal-Provincial Relations (1993) Minister of Veterans Affairs (1993) Minister of National Defence (1993)

Jean Charest

MP for Sherbrooke, Quebec (1984–1993) Minister of State (Youth) (1986-1990) Minister of the Environment (1991-1993)

Jim Edwards

MP for Edmonton Southwest, Alberta (1984–1993) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Communications (1985-1986 and 1989-1991) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (1988-1989) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of State (Agriculture) (1991-1992) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs (1991-1992)

Garth Turner

MP for Halton—Peel, Ontario (1988–1993)

Endorsements

Kim Campbell received the most endorsements from sitting MPs, with 43 backing her. 38 declared their support for Jean Charest, while 15 backed Jim Edwards. Patrick Boyer and Garth Turner were both sitting MPs and neither were supported by any other sitting MP.

Results

Though it was initially expected that Campbell's election as party leader would be little more than a formality, as the convention drew nearer it became apparent that Charest's candidacy was proving far more popular than Campbell and her team had expected, and that she might struggle to defeat him on the first round. Sure enough, Campbell narrowly failed to win outright, coming 60 delegates short of immediate victory. Charest placed a solid second, with none of the other candidates managing to break ten percent of the overall delegate count. Edwards, who had placed third, agreed to drop out and endorse Campbell prior to the second round, which gave her the support she needed to claim victory. Despite Edwards' endorsement, however, only about half of his delegates actually did move to support Campbell; the remaining half instead backed Charest, along with virtually all of Turner's and Boyer's delegates. This left Campbell's final total as 52.7% of the delegates, making this second-only to Joe Clark's shock win over Claude Wagner in 1976 as the most closely contested Progressive Conservative leadership contest.