The Conservative Party has advanced federally into Nova Scotia, winning at least two seats more than in the last election, and making strong appearances on other trips in the hours after polling stations closed.
Conservative Chris d’Entremont, the only member of his party to have a seat in Nova Scotia prior to election day, has kept his seat in West Nova. In 2019 he won for the first time.
In Cumberland-Colchester, the conservative candidate Stephen Ellis was declared the winner with more than 2,000 votes ahead of the liberal incumbent Lenore Zann.
In South Shore-St Margarets, Minister of Fisheries Bernadette Jordan lost to Conservative Rick Perkins by 2,000 votes from 10.30 p.m.
“It will be good to have a couple of partners. We will be able to have a caucus meeting with more than one person and we will be able to move forward and work for Nova Scotians,” said d ‘ Entremont on Monday evening.
Conservative Chris d’Entremont (right) with his wife on Monday evening. d’Entremont retained his seat in West Nova and is no longer the only federal Conservative in Nova Scotia after at least two others have won their races. (Héloïse Rodriguez-Qizilbash / CBC)
The Equestrian d’Entremont is home to the Sipekne’katik First Nation temperate fisheries, which erupted in violence and vandalism in the southwestern part of the province last year.
He said people in the coastal communities around Yarmouth and Argyle remain concerned about conservation and how many lobster stocks are being caught by contract fishing.
Many professional non-indigenous fishermen felt that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans was not doing enough, while indigenous fishermen felt they were “under too much pressure,” said d’Entremont.
“We need some leadership on this and I think people here voted to support my move forward to continue to urge the government to show their leadership,” said d’Entremont.
Liberal incumbent and Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan (left) greets supporters with her husband Dave at the Bridgewater Curling Club after she lost her seat in the federal elections on Monday evening. (CBC)
This leadership will change after Minister of Fisheries Bernadette Jordan lost her seat on Monday evening. She was elected for the first time in 2015.
While Jordan said the fishery was a “tough portfolio,” she said it was a challenging choice and cited a number of other factors that contributed to her defeat besides contract fishing.
“This is absolutely an extremely important issue here because we are so dependent on fishing, but it wasn’t the only issue. I’ve heard a lot about childcare and I’ve heard a lot about health care and I’ve heard a lot about the environment, ”Jordan said.
The result may not be what she hoped for, but Jordan said, “It’s what people wanted,” so she respects that.
“We didn’t leave anything on the table. We did everything we could. It just wasn’t meant to be tonight,” said Jordan.
The liberals Sean Fraser (Central Nova) and Mike Kelloway (Cape Breton-Canso) were the predicted winners of their trips with a comfortable lead of around 1,000 votes just before 10 p.m.
Mike Kelloway, the Liberal incumbent in Cape Breton-Canso, smiled on Monday evening after his re-election. (Tom Ayers / CBC)
At a restaurant halfway between Sydney and Glace Bay, Kelloway told reporters that he was “very humble” and relieved to see his victory.
Kelloway said he was proud that his local office took responsibility for creating the new Fish Harvester Benefit and Grant program. He said he looks forward to making a difference with the promised $ 10 daycare in Nova Scotia by 2026.
When asked if the Conservatives ousted at least two Liberals on Monday night, Kelloway said he would, as chairman of the Atlantic Caucus, help direct a “post mortem” on events across the region.
“What were the problems? Where did we lose ground, where did we gain ground?” said Kelloway. “Every ride is different, so every ride has its own needs.”
Both Dartmouth-Cole Harbor and Sackville-Preston-Chezzetcook remained liberal red, with incumbents Darren Fisher and Darrell Samson respectively being declared the winners shortly after 10 p.m.
A close race emerged in the Cape Breton Riding of Sydney-Victoria when the conservative candidate Eddie Orrell and the liberal incumbent Jaime Battiste switched leads back and forth in the first hours of the results.
Battiste was declared the winner shortly after 11pm by more than 1,000 votes.
Another close race took place in Halifax between Liberal incumbent Andy Fillmore and Lisa Roberts of the NDP, a former provincial MLA for the same party.
At 11:30 p.m. it was still too short to call. Fillmore came out on top with less than 1,000 votes, with three-quarters of the polls reporting.
Only one of the provincial seats was undefended. Halifax West was an open race after longtime Liberal MP Geoff Regan failed to bid again. Lena Diab retained the seat with a predicted victory for the Liberals. She led from 10:30 p.m. with more than 4,800 votes in front of Jonathan Keith Roberts of the NDP
In Kings-Hants, the liberal incumbent Kody Blois easily won against the conservative Mark Parent by nearly 3,000 votes at 10:30 p.m.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led many to vote in special elections; As of September 20, according to Elections Canada, 1,267,014 ballots had been sent and 951,039 were returned.
In-person voting for preliminary votes increased significantly compared to 2019, with around 5,780,000 votes cast between September 10 and 13, according to Elections Canada.