Nova Scotia general election, 2006

Nova Scotia general election, 2006

June 13, 2006
52 seats of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly 27 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   LIB Leader Rodney MacDonald Darrell Dexter Francis MacKenzie Party Progressive Conservative New Democratic Liberal Leader since February 11, 2006 June 2, 2002 October 23, 2004 Leader's seat Inverness Cole Harbour Ran in Bedford (lost) Last election 25 seats, 36.32% 15 seats, 31.00% 12 seats, 31.47% Seats won 23 20 9 Seat change 2 5 3 Popular vote 160,119 140,128 94,872 Percentage 39.57% 34.63% 23.44% Swing 3.33% 3.52% 7.99%
Riding map of Nova Scotia showing winning parties.
Premier before election Rodney MacDonald Progressive Conservative Premier-designate Rodney MacDonald Progressive Conservative

The 37th Nova Scotia general election was held on June 13, 2006 to elect members of the 60th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada.

Premier Rodney MacDonald, who led a Progressive Conservative minority government in the legislature, called for the election on May 13, 2006, hoping for a majority government to better advance his agenda and a clear mandate for himself as he had not yet fought an election as leader.

Ultimately, MacDonald was returned to power leading another, slightly smaller, minority government against a strengthened New Democratic Party sitting as the Official Opposition and a weakened Liberal Party. Liberal leader Francis MacKenzie was defeated in his riding of Bedford.

Timeline

• September 29, 2005 - Premier John Hamm, leader of the Progressive Conservative minority government, announces his intent to resign as soon as the party chooses a new leader.
• February 11, 2006 - Rodney MacDonald is elected to replace Hamm as leader.
• February 24, 2006 - MacDonald becomes Premier and his cabinet is sworn in.
• May 9, 2006 - MacDonald's government introduces an "election-style" budget in the legislature.
• May 13, 2006 - Premier Rodney MacDonald calls a general election for June 13, 2006.^[1]

Campaign

MacKenzie was an outspoken critic of the governing Tories and accused them of living in a "fantasy world" due to their promise to cut taxes and increase spending in the 2006-07 budget.^[2]

No single issue dominated the election campaign, with all parties offering up various promises for university students to seniors.^[3]

Opinion polling

A March 2006 poll by Corporate Research Associates asked voters who they would prefer as premier, 36 per cent of respondents picked Premier Rodney MacDonald, compared to 23 per cent for Darrell Dexter and 16 per cent for Francis MacKenzie. The same poll showed the Progressive Conservatives in the lead with 36 percent of voters compared to 29 percent for the New Democrats and 27 percent for the Liberals.^[2]

Results

The Progressive Conservatives gained several points in the popular vote, but made a net loss of two seats, with losses to the NDP partially countered by the PCs doubling their representation on MacDonald's native Cape Breton Island at the expense of the Liberals. The gap between the Liberals and NDP also significantly increased, in both the popular vote and seat count; while the Liberals and NDP had previously been nearly even, the NDP gained a significant advantage on the Liberals and moved into position as the primary opposition to the governing PCs.

Results by party

* The Green Party did not contest the 2003 election.

Results by region

Retiring incumbents

Progressive Conservative

• Ron Russell, Hants West
• Cecil O'Donnell, Shelburne
• Bill Langille, Colchester North
• Peter G. Christie, Bedford
• John Hamm, Pictou Centre
• Jim DeWolfe, Pictou East

New Democratic

• Jerry Pye, Dartmouth North

Independent

• Russell MacKinnon, Cape Breton West

Nominated candidates

Valley

South Shore

Fundy

Central Halifax

Suburban Halifax

Dartmouth/Cole Harbour/Eastern Shore

Central Nova

Cape Breton

Opinion polls

Notes

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 2006