Former Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro says he can see himself running for federal office again someday - although he won't rule out running municipally or provincially, either.

"I haven't thought that out," he said.

Del Mastro was convicted of election fraud in the fall of 2014; his sentence precludes him from running federally for five years from that time, meaning he can't be a candidate in the 2019 federal election.

But he still says he'd be interested in running for MP again someday.

"I would do it mostly because I think that's the one form of redemption I would most value," he said in a phone interview with The Examiner on Friday.

On Thursday Del Mastro's application to have his case heard before the Supreme Court of Canada was rejected, but he says he plans to file a civil suit against Elections Canada.

He was found guilty in 2014 of having overspent on his election campaign in 2008 and of having taken steps to cover it up.

Del Mastro was sentenced to 30 days in jail and four months of house arrest from his 83-hectare farm in Bailieboro, south of Peterborough.

He didn't return to jail on Thursday because he's already fulfilled the custodial requirement of his sentence.

He says he's filing a civil suit against Elections Canada because they carried out an "indefensibly sloppy" investigation where evidence was left out.

Never mind that a trial judge felt there was enough evidence to convict Del Mastro, that he lost two appeals and that the Supreme Court dismissed him: he says he can win a civil lawsuit against Elections Canada.

"This is an open and shut case," he said. "This was a very shoddy investigation."

Del Mastro wouldn't say how much he's spent so far on legal fees or where he's getting the money to pay.

"I've spent enough to send Charlotte (his three-year-old daughter) to grad school 100 times over - but I'm still working," he said.

Although Del Mastro says he's still chief financial officer of his cousin David Del Mastro's company, Deltro Group, he wouldn't talk about his work.

The firm announced plans in late 2015 to build a $40-million solar farm in Barbados, but construction never took place.

Deltro also announced plans in November to build a similar solar farm in Cuba, but on Friday he wouldn't say whether those plans are still on track.

Although he could ask for special permission to travel for work, Del Mastro says he won't do that: he's staying in Bailieboro on house arrest.

If ever he ran for MP again, Del Mastro says it would be up to the Conservatives to decide whether he could run for the party.

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While he says he remains ideologically Conservative, his views on partisan politics have changed. At one time, he viewed political parties much as he does sports teams: you look out for your teammates.

But he doesn't see it that way anymore, particularly since former Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown stepped down earlier this year following allegations of sexual misconduct.

"A political party can be a lot less like a team and a lot more like a wolf pack," Del Mastro said. "And sometimes, that pack decides to turn on its own."