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Rempel’s comments were spurred by an apparent onslaught of messages from supporters, who called on her to “do it” and run for leader. Later Thursday, in an interview the National Post, she would not say for certain whether she was planning on a bid.

“We need to ensure that we are sending a message through our leadership race that we are open to hearing all sorts of ideas and perspectives from different types of candidates in different types of regions,” she said. “There isn’t one pre-conceived box that defines who or what we’re looking for.”

As for her gender, she said she never felt her gender had held her back in her career; rather, that she didn’t want anyone selecting themselves out of the leadership pool.

“There are always reasons people give you why you shouldn’t do it, it’s usually framed as they’re giving you inside information at this state.”

Resentment against the Conservative’s old guard appears to have emerged in the the aftermath of the election, with party faithful grumbling about the campaign’s cynical tone — which stood in stark contrast to the exuberance of Justin Trudeau and the Liberals. Senior Harper government ministers — including Jason Kenney, a possible leadership contender — have publicly called for a revamp of the Tory image.

“We need a conservatism that is sunnier and more optimistic than what we have sometimes conveyed,” Kenney said after the election.

Lisa Raitt, the Tory minister of transport lamented on CBC Radio that the Conservative campaign didn’t appeal to “women like me between the ages of 18 and 49 years old.”

The Calagary Herald reportedThursday that women in the Tory caucus were incensed by Harper’s attacks on female premiers, namely Ontario’s Kathleen Wynne and Alberta’s Rachel Notley.

With files from Jen Gerson, National Post and the Canadian Press

Here’s the full set of Rempel’s tweets: