Nova Scotia general election, 2003

Nova Scotia general election, 2003

August 5, 2003

52 seats of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly 27 seats needed for a majority   First party Second party Third party   LIB Leader John Hamm Darrell Dexter Danny Graham Party Progressive Conservative New Democratic Liberal Leader's seat Pictou Centre Cole Harbour Halifax Citadel Last election 30 11 11 Seats won 25 15 12 Seat change -5 +4 +1 Popular vote 148,182 126,479 128,417 Percentage 36.32% 31.00% 31.47% Swing -2.88% +1.03% +1.66%

Riding map of Nova Scotia showing winning parties.

Premier before election John Hamm Progressive Conservative Premier-designate John Hamm Progressive Conservative

The 36th Nova Scotia general election was held on August 5, 2003 to elect members of the 59th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The ruling Progressive Conservative Party, led by Premier John Hamm, was reduced to a minority government.

Election

The election was called by Conservatives, who decided to hold a rare summer election in the hope of strengthening their hold on the legislature. Running against them were the New Democratic Party (NDP), led by Darrell Dexter, and the Liberal Party, led by Danny Graham.

Hamm's party ran on a policy of fiscal management, tax cuts, and on their record of fulfilling most of their promises. While the NDP agreed in principle to tax cuts, their main cause was the creation of a public auto insurance company. The Liberals were the only party to criticize the tax cuts.

For the most part, the campaign was quiet and uneventful. Hamm received criticism for a great number of spending programs, including a $150 tax rebate cheque sent to Nova Scotians right before the election. The party was also criticized for holding an election in the summer when most people have other concerns. Darrell Dexter's friendly, non-confrontational style, was popular with many voters, and was a marked change from his party's usually strident socialism. Danny Graham, a young leader, was popular, but failed to make much of a mark.

The election was considered a mild failure for the Liberals and Conservatives, and something of a success for the NDP.

This election is also notable for being one of the last Canadian provincial elections in which British subjects could vote (a tiny number can still vote provincially in Saskatchewan if they were qualified in 1971).

General results

Results by party

• The Marijuana Party did not contest the 1999 general election.

Results by region

Riding results

• bold denotes a cabinet minister or party leader
• † denotes an incumbent not seeking re-election

Valley

South Shore

Fundy

Central Halifax

Suburban Halifax

Dartmouth/Cole Harbour/Eastern Shore

Central Nova

Cape Breton

By-elections since the general election

Chester—St. Margaret's (Death of John Chataway), June 21, 2005:

• *Ind. results compared to that of the NSP during the general election.

See also

• List of Nova Scotia general elections
• List of Nova Scotia political parties

References

• Government of Nova Scotia. "Summary Results from 1867 to 2011" (PDF). Elections Statistics. Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved 2013-10-01. 

External links

• CBC Nova Scotia Votes 2003
• Halifax Herald 2003 election website via Internet Archive.

Elections and referendums in Nova Scotia General elections 1867 1871 1874 1878 1882 1886 1890 1894 1897 1901 1906 1911 1916 1920 1925 1928 1933 1937 1941 1945 1949 1953 1956 1960 1963 1967 1970 1974 1978 1981 1984 1988 1993 1998 1999 2003 2006 2009 2013 next Referendums 1929 2004 See also: List of Nova Scotia by-elections