The fortunes of Nova Scotia New Democrats, led by former CUPE education rep Robert Chisolm, continue to rise. In four provincial by-elections November 4, the NDP won one seat in Cape Breton Island and came within 161 votes of taking another in Halifax.
In Cape Breton-The Lakes, school administrator Helen MacDonald scored a lopsided victory for the NDP in a seat that had been held by former Liberal finance minister Bernie Boudreau. It was the first Cape Breton win for the NDP since 1981.
“We’re on the move,” Chisolm told jubilant supporters. “We’ve shown ourselves to be more than a protest party.”
The results reinforce recent opinion pools which have shown the NDP and Liberals in a close race across the province, with the Tories trailing. A general election must be called in Nova Scotia by next May at the latest.
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