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Nova Scotia Liberal Party

Political party in Nova Scotia, Canada

Nova Scotia Liberal Party
Active provincial party
Leader	Zach Churchill
President	Margaret Miller[1]
Secretary	David Mackeigan[1]
Founded	1883; 141 years ago (1883)
Headquarters	5151 George Street Suite 1400 Halifax, Nova Scotia B3J 2T3
Youth wing	Nova Scotia Young Liberals
Ideology	Liberalism
Political position	Centre
National affiliation	Liberal Party of Canada
Colours	Red
Seats in House of Assembly	15 / 55
Website
Official website
Politics of Nova Scotia Political parties Elections

The Nova Scotia Liberal Party (officially the Liberal Association of Nova Scotia^[2]) is a centrist provincial political party in Nova Scotia, Canada and the provincial section of the Liberal Party of Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition in Nova Scotia, under the leadership of Zach Churchill. The party was in power most recently from the 2013 election until the 2021 election.^[3][4]

Origins[edit]

The party is descended from the pre-Confederation Reformers in Nova Scotia who coalesced around Joseph Howe demanding the institution of responsible government. The Liberals (Reformers) formed several governments in the colony between 1848 and 1867.

The party split during the debate on Confederation, with Howe and most other Liberals forming an Anti-Confederation Party, while supporters of confederation joined Tory Charles Tupper's Confederation Party. Howe, himself, initially opposed Confederation, but accepted it as a reality after initial attempts to scuttle it failed.

In 1868, Howe joined the pro-Confederation forces, serving for a time in the federal Cabinet of Sir John A. Macdonald.

The Anti-Confederation Party took most of Nova Scotia's seats in the House of Commons of Canada in 1867, as well as forming the government of the new province under William Annand. The new, post-1867 Liberal Party was organised by Annand and his anti-Confederate forces, while the Conservative Party was organised by Tupper and supporters of Sir John A. Macdonald's coalition in the province.

Prior to 1956, the Nova Scotia Liberal Party had ruled the province for 76 of its 89 years, most of that time with fewer than five opposition members. It had also ruled prior to confederation, and was responsible for bringing the first responsible government to North America. From 1882 to 1925, the Liberals held power for an unbroken 43 years, the second longest serving political dynasty in Canadian history, behind the Alberta PCs.^[5]

The party in recent years[edit]

From 1956, the Tories gained significant ground with Robert Stanfield's reformation of the "Progressive Conservatives", and have successfully challenged the Liberals for control of the government. The Liberals faltered in the province at the beginning of the 21st century, and for a time were the third-largest party in the House of Assembly, behind the Tories and the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party. After the Nova Scotia Liberal Party's dismal performance in the 2006 election (and failing to win his own seat), leader Francis MacKenzie announced his resignation.^[6] He was succeeded by Stephen McNeil. In the 2009 election, the Liberals moved out of third-party status and formed the official opposition once again. In the 2013 election, the Liberals won a majority government, their first since the 1993 election under John Savage, and took office for the first time in 14 years.^[7] Under McNeil, a self-described fiscal conservative, the party pushed for balanced provincial budgets and took a firm stance against public sector unions.^[8]

The Nova Scotia Liberals are the provincial section of the federal Liberal Party of Canada. The two parties have a shared membership, and Liberal Members of Parliament often become Liberal Members of the Legislative Assembly, and vice versa. Gerald Regan, for instance, became leader of the provincial party after serving as a Liberal MP. He joined the federal Liberal government after serving as premier of Nova Scotia. Angus L. Macdonald, the province's most storied Liberal premier, split his term into two by spending five years as a federal Liberal cabinet minister in the wartime government of William Lyon Mackenzie King.

In the 2009 election, Stephen McNeil led the Liberals to Official Opposition status, winning 11 seats.^[9]

In the 2013 election, the McNeil Liberals won a majority government, defeating the NDP government of Darrell Dexter.^[10]

In the 2017 election, the McNeil Liberals retained a reduced majority of 27 seats in the legislature.^[11]

On August 6, 2020, McNeil announced he will step down as party leader and that he will continue to act as premier and as the party's leader until the a replacement is found.^[12] On February 23, 2021, Rankin became the 29th Premier of Nova Scotia, replacing McNeil.^[13] Rankin called a snap election for August 17, 2021, which his Liberal Party lost.^[14] Rankin was personally re-elected in Timberlea-Prospect.^[15]

Current elected member[edit]

Party leaders[edit]

• James B. Uniacke (1840–1854)
• William Young (1854–1860)
• Joseph Howe (1860–1864)
• Adams G. Archibald (1864–1867)
• William Annand (1867–1875)
• Philip Carteret Hill (1875–1878)
• William F. McCurdy (1878–1882) (house leader)
• William Thomas Pipes (1882–1884)
• William Stevens Fielding (1884–1896)
• George Henry Murray (1896–1923)
• Ernest Howard Armstrong (1923–1925)
• William Chisholm (1925–1930)
• Angus L. Macdonald (1930–1940)
• A.S. MacMillan (1940–1945)
• Angus L. Macdonald (1945–1954)
• Harold Connolly (1954) (interim)
• Henry Hicks (1954–1961)
• Earl W. Urquhart (1961–1965) (house leader 1961–1962)
• Gerald Regan (1965–1980)
• Benoit Comeau (1980) (interim)
• Sandy Cameron (1980–1985)
• Vince MacLean (1985)
• Bill Gillis (1985–1986) (interim)
• Vince MacLean (1986–1992)
• John Savage (1992–1997)
• Russell MacLellan (1997–2000)
• Wayne Gaudet (2000–2002) (interim)
• Danny Graham (2002–2004)
• Wayne Gaudet (2004) (interim)
• Francis MacKenzie (2004–2006)
• Michel Samson (2006–2007) (interim)
• Stephen McNeil (2007–2021)
• Iain Rankin (2021–2022)^[16]
• Zach Churchill (2022-Present)^[17]

Election results[edit]

Election	Leader	Votes	%	Seats	+/–	Position	Government
1867	William Annand		58.6	36 / 38	21	1st	Majority
1871			52.2	24 / 38	12	1st	Majority
1874	Philip Carteret Hill		55.0	22 / 38	2	1st	Majority
1878			45.1	6 / 38	16	2nd	Opposition
1882	None		51.8	24 / 38	18	1st	Majority
1886	William Stevens Fielding		54.7	28 / 38	4	1st	Majority
1890			52.2	29 / 38	1	1st	Majority
1894			51.9	25 / 38	4	1st	Majority
1897	George Henry Murray		55.0	34 / 38	9	1st	Majority
1901			56.7	36 / 38	2	1st	Majority
1906			53.2	32 / 38	4	1st	Majority
1911			51.1	26 / 38	10	1st	Majority
1916			50.4	31 / 43	5	1st	Majority
1920			44.4	29 / 43	2	1st	Majority
1925	Ernest Howard Armstrong		36.3	3 / 43	26	2nd	Opposition
1928	William Chisholm		47.2	18 / 43	15	2nd	Opposition
1933	Angus Lewis Macdonald		52.6	22 / 30	4	1st	Majority
1937			51.0	25 / 30	3	1st	Majority
1941	Alexander Stirling MacMillan		52.6	22 / 30	3	1st	Majority
1945	Angus Lewis Macdonald		52.7	28 / 30	6	1st	Majority
1949			51.0	27 / 37	1	1st	Majority
1953			49.0	22 / 37	5	1st	Majority
1956	Henry Hicks	159,666	48.2	18 / 43	4	2nd	Opposition
1960		147,951	42.6	15 / 43	3	2nd	Opposition
1963	Earl Wallace Urquhart	134,873	39.7	4 / 43	11	2nd	Opposition
1967	Gerald Regan	142,945	41.8	6 / 46	2	2nd	Opposition
1970		174,943	46.1	23 / 46	17	1st	Minority
1974		206,648	47.9	31 / 46	8	1st	Majority
1978		175,218	39.4	17 / 52	14	2nd	Opposition
1981	Sandy Cameron	139,604	33.2	13 / 52	4	2nd	Opposition
1984		129,310	31.3	6 / 52	7	2nd	Opposition
1988	Vince MacLean	186,007	39.6	21 / 52	15	2nd	Opposition
1993	John Savage	243,298	49.7	40 / 52	19	1st	Majority
1998	Russell MacLellan	158,620	35.3	19 / 52	21	1st	Minority
1999		128,795	29.8	11 / 52	8	3rd	Third party
2003	Danny Graham	128,417	31.5	12 / 52	1	3rd	Third party
2006	Francis MacKenzie	94,872	23.4	9 / 52	3	3rd	Third party
2009	Stephen McNeil	112,160	27.2	11 / 52	2	2nd	Opposition
2013		190,112	45.7	33 / 51	22	1st	Majority
2017		157,541	39.5	27 / 51	6	1st	Majority
2021	Iain Rankin	155,026	36.67	17 / 55	10	2nd	Opposition

See also[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Liberal Party of Nova Scotia.

• List of Nova Scotia political parties
• List of Nova Scotia premiers
• 2022 Nova Scotia Liberal Party leadership election
• Nova Scotia Liberal Party leadership elections

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Liberal Party of Nova Scotia