OTTAWA — Andrew Scheer will head to a gathering of Conservative faithful this week looking to refocus his party on 2019’s electoral battle after a week of unwanted headlines about a former leadership rival.

Scheer will deliver a keynote address to the Conservative policy convention in Halifax on Friday. It will be the largest crowd of Conservatives he’s addressed since becoming party leader in 2017, and likely the largest crowd he’ll address before next year’s general election.

For the rookie political leader, it’s a chance to set the tone for his campaign to unseat Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government — and to pivot away from a week of former rival Maxime Bernier’s musings on the dangers of multiculturalism and “political correctness.”

Last week, Scheer was forced to respond to a Bernier Twitter rant about how “ever more diversity” will “destroy what has made (Canada) such a great country.”

Bernier was criticizing Trudeau’s oft-repeated line that diversity is Canada’s strength, but soon faced direct and public criticism from his own caucus colleagues over the comments.

“Mr. Bernier does not hold a position in our caucus. He’s not a shadow minister, he’s not the spokesperson on any issue,” Scheer told reporters in Regina last Thursday.

“It’s clear that when he expresses those types of comments that he speaks for himself. … I’m not going to get into internal caucus dynamics, those are things we decide as a team, as a caucus, as a group of Parliamentarians. But as I said, there is that expectation that we all work toward the same goal.”

For a party with a history of rigid message discipline, this summer has been an outlier. Senior Conservative MPs have publicly disagreed on social media, freelanced policy, and at times stolen the spotlight from their own leader — things that would have been hard to imagine under Stephen Harper.

Conservatives who spoke to the Star last week suggested the Twitter blowups are distractions that resonate largely among pundits and political observers, and are unlikely to move the electoral needle.

But heading in to what the party hopes to be a momentum-building family reunion, questions about Scheer’s ability to manage his caucus — and their philosophy on hot-button issues like immigration, diversity and inclusion — are undoubtedly unwelcome.

The convention schedule puts a heavy emphasis on learning the ropes of modern campaigning, including training on the party’s mobile canvassing app, managing a campaign team and “working with the media.”

The 76 policy resolutions put forward by grassroots members will be debated in public workshops, which will determine which policies make it to a general vote.

The proposals include old Conservative saws like breaking down interprovincial trade barriers, simplifying the tax code, and opposition to the Liberals’ proposed national carbon pricing scheme.

Some more socially conservative proposals will also be debated — including several anti-abortion proposals, opposition to assisted suicide and labelling pornography as a “public health risk.”

But there are also nods to the party’s more recent preoccupations.

A number of Conservative riding associations are advocating cracking down on irregular crossings at the Canada-U. S. border, an issue that the party has put front and centre in the House of Commons. One suggests turning away border crossers “without process,” which would violate both Canadian law and international treaties.

Several other motions relate to freedom of speech, including one that would make Scheer’s proposal to withhold federal funding to universities that “do not protect free speech” official party policy.

While this may be a policy convention, however, there’s more at stake than just the party platform. Darrell Bricker, the head of Ipsos Public Affairs, said the convention will be a chance for Scheer to up his name recognition with Canadians.

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“Given that he’s up against the biggest rock star in Canadian politics in my living memory … the need to at least get on the radar with people is significant,” Bricker said Thursday.

“I don’t think it’s about him making a splash, because splashiness is what (Trudeau) does. It’s more just getting present.”

Bricker suggested the Conservative grassroots want to see Scheer project competence and confidence in his ability to get the job done, while bringing a measure of dignity that Conservative voters tend to appreciate in their leaders.

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