Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu is mentioned as a candidate to fill one of two vacant Senate seats in Quebec. Boisvenu, left, is greeted by Quebec Labour Minister David Whissell at the legislature in November 2007 after the province tabled legislation to help crime victims and their families. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu is mentioned as a candidate to fill one of two vacant Senate seats in Quebec. Boisvenu, left, is greeted by Quebec Labour Minister David Whissell at the legislature in November 2007 after the province tabled legislation to help crime victims and their families. (Jacques Boissinot/Canadian Press)

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is poised to name five new senators on Friday, giving the Conservatives effective control in both houses of Parliament as well as greater sway over the legislative agenda.

Harper will appoint two senators from Ontario and one each in Quebec, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador and speculation was swirling about who will get the nod.

Long-time provincial politician Bob Runciman may be tapped for one of the two Senate vacancies in Ontario. Runciman has long been interested in the Senate. He has been the member for the eastern Ontario riding of Leeds-Grenville in the provincial legislature since 1981 and has served in a number of provincial cabinet posts during his career.

The second Ontario job could go to David Braley, owner of the B.C. Lions football club, former owner of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and big-time charity donor.

In Quebec, victims' rights activist Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu may be tapped. He founded a provincial association to help families of victims after his daughter Julie was killed in the summer of 2002. The 27-year-old woman was kidnapped and murdered by a man who had been released on parole.

Ever since, Boisvenu has been a vocal advocate for victims' families, calling for more support and resources to help them cope with what happened to their loved ones.

Also in the running are Andree Ruffo, a former judge who has acted as a child advocate as well as Benoit Bouchard, a former federal minister in the cabinet of Brian Mulroney.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, Loyola Sullivan is rumoured to be a shoo-in. The former Progressive Conservative provincial cabinet minister was one of the first supporters of Harper's leadership bid for the Canadian Alliance and is said to be very close to the prime minister. Former Progressive Conservative MP Loyola Hearn was also rumoured to be in the running, but is considered a less likely candidate.

Meanwhile, two lesser-known contenders in New Brunswick include the widely respected Elvy Robichaud, who served as former premier Bernard Lord's health minister for several years, and Roger Clinch, a former Progressive Conservative MP from Acadie-Bathurst (formerly Gloucester) from 1984 to 1988.

Sources told CBC News that Lord has been ruled out as a contender because he still has designs on running for the federal Conservative leadership.

Other names being circulated are that of Mulroney-era cabinet minister Bernard Valcourt, who served as Mulroney's Human Resources minister as well as another Lord cabinet minister, Margaret-Ann Blaney.