Kim Masland was re-elected Tuesday as MLA for Queens in Nova Scotia’s provincial election. (Rick Conrad)
UPDATED Nov. 27, 4 p.m.
It’s a threepeat for Kim Masland, who will once again represent the riding of Queens in the Nova Scotia legislature.
The Liverpool resident easily won re-election on Tuesday night. It’s her third win in a row.
Masland told QCCR on Tuesday night that she doesn’t take any election for granted.
“It’s fabulous, I’m just so grateful to the voters of Queens who have put their trust in me to represent them again in the Nova Scotia legislature,” she said.
“I do not take the position of MLA lightly. I know it comes with great responsibility and I’m just absolutely humbled and consider myself very blessed to once again represent the people of Queens. And I will keep working hard for us.”
The former Public Works minister and government House leader will again be part of a Progressive Conservative majority government.
Masland garnered 79.93 per cent of the vote. Turnout in Queens was 46.91 per cent.
In the 2021 election, Masland won the riding with 70.4 per cent of the vote. Turnout in 2021 was 57.8 per cent.
Liberal Cathy De Rome of Beach Meadows was in second, while the NDP’s Brian Skabar was in third.
De Rome told QCCR on Wednesday that she wasn’t surprised by Masland’s win and she wishes her well.
“I was so happy to be able to talk to so many people and the response I received and the encouragement was very positive. Unfortunately, all the words of encouragement did not translate into more votes. … And hey, we knew it was an uphill battle from the get-go. We were disappointed but yet we’re pleased with what we did.”
Skabar could not be reached for comment.
The Progressive Conservatives under leader Tim Houston won their second majority government with 43 seats. The NDP will form the official Opposition with nine seats, while the Liberals held onto two.
Masland said she knocked on more than 6,000 doors and logged more 880,000 steps during the campaign.
She credited her team with working hard to put her back in the legislature.
“I had an absolutely amazing team behind me here in Queens County. My campaign manager is Grant Webber, he’s been with me since the beginning.
“And you can’t win an election campaign by yourself. It takes hard work, it takes people believing in you. The people on my team they put their lives on hold to be part of this team for the benefit of Queens County, their own community. I’m very grateful for them and really glad that I can spend this evening celebrating with my team and my family.”
She said the late John Leefe, who was a longtime PC MLA for Queens and a former mayor of the Region of Queens, gave her advice that has stuck with her.
“As my dear friend and mentor John Leefe always said to me, you run a campaign as if you’re one vote behind. And that is how we have run this campaign. We never give up. We did not stop until the polls closed tonight, and I’m just very, very pleased with the campaign that we’ve run here.”
Turnout across the province appears to be lower than in 2021. Elections Nova Scotia hasn’t released official numbers yet, but it appears that turnout was around 45 per cent, compared to 55.1 per cent in 2021.
Liberal Cathy De Rome, PC incumbent Kim Masland and New Democrat Brian Skabar are running in Queens in the Nova Scotia election. (Rick Conrad, Nova Scotia NDP)
The two people hoping to unseat popular MLA Kim Masland in Queens admit it’s an uphill battle, but they say they’ve been hearing good things from voters.
Cathy De Rome is running for the Liberals and Brian Skabar is trying to take the seat back for the NDP in Tuesday’s provincial election.
Masland is trying for a repeat in a riding she captured in 2021 for the Progressive Conservatives with 70 per cent of the vote. Before that, the riding was Queens-Shelburne, which Masland won in 2017 with almost 44 per cent of the vote.
Election Day is Tues., Nov. 26. But Queens County residents can vote early at the returning office on Market Street in Liverpool or at the North Queens Fire Hall in Caledonia.
When the election was called on Oct. 27, the Tories had 34 seats, the Liberals had 14, the NDP had 6 and there was one independent.
De Rome lives in Beach Meadows and is a retired elementary school teacher. She’s also the president of the Queens Liberal association. Skabar is originally from Amherst, but now lives near Caledonia. He is a retired social worker and a former NDP MLA for Cumberland North.
De Rome and Skabar say that they know it’s going to be tough to defeat Masland. But they say it’s important to run.
“Our democracy is only as strong as the people who participate in it,” De Rome said in a recent interview. “And I want people to become involved and find out what the issues are and how they can work at participating and hopefully making things better.
“Kim is very popular and she has been doing it a long time. But just maybe it’s time for a change.”
Skabar says he’s knocked on 40 to 50 doors a day during the campaign. And even though he’s new to the area, he says he’s been getting positive feedback.
“To my surprise, only having been here for two years, either people in Queens County are really, really kind, 0r I might have half a chance,” he said in an interview.
“Three out of five doors that I knock one are supportive of New Democrats. Our incumbent here is quite popular individually but I don’t think people are really crazy about Tim Houston.”
Masland could not be reached for an interview. But in a video posted on her Facebook page, she said she’s knocked on more than 5,000 doors in the campaign.
She also posted that the Houston government has hired more doctors, helped build more affordable housing, and made record investments in road and bridge infrastructure.
De Rome says that while many voters say they’re not happy with the state of health care, housing and affordability, they haven’t asked her much about she or the Liberals plan to address it.
“People will complain. When the other day I said to a man, ‘Do you have any questions?’ He said no. And so I said, ‘Are you happy with things?’ ‘Not really’. So it just didn’t quite make sense.”
De Rome points to the Liberal plan to build more homes using the co-operative housing model, open more collaborative care clinics around the province, and to forgive part of certain health-care workers’ student loans for up to five years.
“We are getting more doctors, it seems, but people are still having long waits in emergency. … To sit in emergency for nine-plus hours to have a prescription renewed is ridiculous.”
The NDP had been a force in the traditionally Conservative riding of Queens from 2006 to 2013. Sterling Belliveau hung on to the seat for the party in 2013 when it was changed to Queens-Shelburne.
But the NDP haven’t had much of a presence since Belliveau retired before the 2017 election.
Skabar says he’s hearing from voters who are upset about Premier Tim Houston’s early election call. He says voters have told him they like some parts of the PC plan. But they wonder why the party needed an election to do that.
Skabar adds that Masland has done a good job getting roadwork done in Queens County.
“I only just met Kim last week at the community dinner here in Caledonia. And really, what’s not to like? Actually, she’s a good member. But the government that she represents is not doing a good job for Nova Scotia.”
The Liberals’ De Rome says that no matter which party people support, she hopes they get out and vote.
“I would consider it an honour if they chose to elect me. I’ve never thought of doing this, but I am enjoying it. People have been very receptive when I’ve talked to them. … I hope people take the chance to get out and vote. It’s important. Go out and vote, put your X in the spot where you think would do the most good.”
You can vote early at the returning office in your area until 8 p.m. on Friday or until 6 p.m. on Saturday and Monday.
If you don’t know where your Election Day voting location is, you can use the Where do I Vote tool on the Elections Nova Scotia website at electionsnovascotia.ca or call 1-800-565-1504. Polls will be open on Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Dorothy Rice, has received an order from the Governor in Council for a Provincial general election(PGE) to be held in Nova Scotia. The CEO has issued the writs of election for the 55 electoral districts in the province and election day will be Tuesday, November 26, 2024.
Nova Scotians who are 18 years or older, a Canadian citizen, and have lived in the province for 6 months before the election call can vote in the PGE.
“Voters in Nova Scotia can count on Elections Nova Scotia to deliver on our mandate by providing a fair and balance election,” says Dorothy Rice, Chief Electoral Officer of Nova Scotia, “We offer a variety of voting options because we want the electoral process to be accessible so all voters can participate in democracy.”
There are 26 early voting days available in Nova Scotia during the 42nd PGE. Voting will begin on Wednesday, October 30, 2024 at the returning offices in all 55 electoral districts.
Before election day, voters in Nova Scotia can cast their ballot early at any voting location in the province, not just in their home electoral district. This allows voters to vote when and where it is convenient for them.
Early voting after the close of candidate nominations on Wednesday, November 6, will be done using Elections Nova Scotia’s new secure e-Ballot system. e-Ballot allows voters to cast their vote on a secure tablet in-person at an early voting location. Early voting before the close of candidate nominations will be done by paper ballot, using the write-in ballot.
Write-in ballot is the remote voting option for voters in the 42nd PGE. Voters can apply to vote by mail using a write-in ballot. A trusted friend of family member can act as an agent to assist a voter with their write-in ballot application. Returning offices call also make arrangements for a write-in ballot to visit voters at their home.
On election day, Tuesday, November 26, 2024, voters must vote at their assigned voting location or the returning office in their electoral district. Elections day voting will be done on traditional paper ballots. Polls will be open on election day from 8 am – 8 pm.
An information postcard will be mailed to every household in the province next week to help voters understand their voting options. Elections Nova Scotia encourages voters to get to know their voting options and make a plan to cast their ballot in the 42nd PGE.
The Region of Queens is holding an information session for prospective candidates in October’s municipal election. (Elections Nova Scotia Facebook)
The Region of Queens is planning an information session for anyone thinking of running for mayor or council in this fall’s municipal election.
The session is scheduled for Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Queens Place Emera Centre.
It will explain the process from now until after the election, including the nomination process, candidate requirements, electoral boundaries, position requirements (including time requirements and expectations for council members as well as compensation). Municipal officials will also answer questions.
To reserve a spot, call Angela Green, the region’s deputy returning officer, at 902-354-3453 or by email at agreen@regionofqueens.com .
Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman will not be seeking another term in the October municipal election. (Rick Conrad)
Darlene Norman has made it official, announcing she won’t seek re-election as mayor of the Region of Queens.
“I have decided not to reoffer simply because these last four years have made me realize that it was one thing to be a councillor, it’s another thing to be the mayor,” she said in an interview Wednesday.
“When you are a councillor and you vote in a certain way at a meeting and the vote didn’t go your way, then it’s over and done. When you are the mayor and you vote at a council meeting for something that you feel is very important and you lose the vote, … as the mayor you still have to speak on behalf of council for the vote. And I am the type of personality that finds it very difficult to speak favorably about an issue that I think is so wrong.”
Norman’s decision to serve one term as mayor caps a 20-year career in municipal politics, which began in 2000 when she was elected councillor in District 1, which covers the area of Hunts Point, White Point, Port Mouton and Port Joli.
She served as councillor for the area until 2016 when she was defeated by current councillor Kevin Muise.
In 2020, she decided to run for mayor, beating incumbent David Dagley and two other challengers – Susan MacLeod and Brian Fralic.
Norman said she enjoyed her time as mayor.
“I really liked being the mayor, I liked helping people, I liked meeting people. But I just have a very difficult time when I have to as mayor speak on behalf of council and it’s a decision of which I disagreed. Other than that, being the mayor was wonderful.”
In a Facebook post on Tuesday announcing her decision, she said council has achieved many good things over the past four years. But she said there were other things she regrets.
One of those was not building a new library. The Thomas H. Raddall Library has to leave its leased premises in downtown Liverpool by the end of December. After many stops and starts, council couldn’t agree on a new permanent location, so they decided to put it, at least temporarily, in the Liverpool Business Development Centre on White Point Road.
“We could have built a lovely library, it would have been open by now. For one reason or another, things went sideways. Council couldn’t agree on a location.”
Another frustration for Norman over the past four years is the concentration of municipal resources in the Liverpool, Brooklyn and Milton areas. She says council needs to find a way to improve services in other areas of Queens County, such as north Queens and areas outside the so-called urban core of Liverpool.
“Our biggest assessment areas are in rural Queens. … I look around at north Queens, east and west, people are paying incredible tax dollars in those parts of the county, despite people in the town of Liverpool who think they’re paying the biggest tax dollars. I’m just finding it really difficult with the Region of Queens and trying to find a balance with specnding in rural as well as central.”
She said building new accessible washroom and change room facilities at Beach Meadows Beach was council’s way to try to spread some municipal dollars outside the Liverpool-Brooklyn-Milton core.
“Those are good things, those are really positive things for Queens. … There have been so many more benefits than disappointments.”
And even though the region still struggles with staffing shortages, she said she’s very proud of what municipal employees have been able to accomplish. She said the region has only two building inspectors and one planner, at a time when development is on the rise. And she said their bylaw enforcement division is also understaffed, while complaints increase.
“People are so quick to criticize the staff of the Region of Queens and I really wish that perhaps people like that could be the mayor for a week or a month and actually sit in my chair and get a good understanding of how much work they do, because our staff work hard.”
Norman said another reason she won’t be reoffering in October’s municipal election is the abuse she said she’s received on social media.
“The cruel, the unkind, the unjust things that are said. And all people have to do is pick up a phone and they’ll know that all those rumours aren’t true. I tend to bite my tongue and … almost cut off my fingers not to write back some things on some posts that I’ve read. But it’s just not what I was prepared for.
“And I just don’t want it anymore. I’m a really good sleeper and when I don’t sleep at night because of stuff at council or things going on, I have too many people my age dropping dead and I want to do positive things that have positive results and are not attached with any negativism.”
She says she’s not sure what she’ll do after October. But it will include spending more time with her young grandson in Shelburne. And she plans to volunteer in her community of Port Medway and work on some of her art projects.
“I’ll find something to do. … I’m interested in helping my community of Port Medway. … I’m artistic, I might just discover who I am again. But I want to get out and do something that I want to do that doesn’t have the stressors that being the mayor does.”
Regardless of some of that stress, she says she’s grateful for the opportunity to be mayor of the Region of Queens for the past four years.
“I’d just like to thank the people of Queens for poviding me this wonderful privilege to represent Queens County,” she says. “And it is a privilege. We are a wonderful county, we have some of the best people in the world. And we are very attractive to people around the world who want to live here. So let’s welcome newcomers, regardless of what country or what culture they are. Diversity is wonderful for us. It makes us stronger. Thanks to the people of Queens.
“And I’m here for a couple of more months if there’s anything anybody needs any help with.”
The municipal election is set for Oct. 19. Former teacher Terry Doucette and business consultant Scott Christian have already announced their campaigns for mayor. People have until Sept. 10 to file their nomination papers.
For the first time, voters in Queens will be able to make their choices by traditional ballot or by phone or online.
Candidate information packages for the Oct. 19 municipal election are now available at Region of Queens offices. (Elections Nova Scotia Facebook)
If you want to run for Region of Queens mayor or council in October, information packages for candidates are now available at the region’s administration building on White Point Road.
The offices are open Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
To run for council or mayor, you must be a resident of Queens County as of March 9.
The deadline to file your nomination papers is Sept. 10, though you can file the paperwork seven business days before the deadline, beginning Aug. 29.
There are two advance polls: Oct. 12 and 15, with Election Day on Oct. 19.
This year, for the first time, voters will have three ways to cast their ballots – in person, by phone or online.
For more information, contact returning officer Ian Kent at ikent@regionofqueens.com or 902-646-1033.
Region of Queens councillors Jack Fancy, David Brown and Vicki Amirault have declared their intentions for October’s municipal election. (Rick Conrad)
With less than three months to go before October’s municipal election, incumbents and former councillors in Queens County are declaring their intentions.
So far, three of the seven sitting councillors have said they won’t run again. Three others have declared they will run again.
District 1 Coun. Kevin Muise could not be reached. And Mayor Darlene Norman hasn’t yet announced her plans.
District 6 Coun. David Brown is one of the councillors who won’t be reoffering. District 2 Coun. Ralph Gidney and District 7 Coun. Carl Hawkes are the others. Gidney’s area will be changed to District 3. Former councillor Susan MacLeod, who placed second in the 2020 mayor’s race, will be running to replace Gidney.
Brown told QCCR that he feels he’s done what he can for his constituents. He represents the areas around Port Medway, Mill Village, Greenfield and Labelle. A newcomer to municipal politics in the 2020 election, he beat Jason Croft by about 130 votes.
“I feel like I’ve accomplished as much as I can accomplish in council and I’m not really happy with the process, so I’m looking at different avenues for moving on,” he said. “I just feel like we’re a municipal council, but we don’t govern like a municipal council. We still govern like a town council.
“It seems like everything we do is centred around Brooklyn, Liverpool and Milton and any time we try to get anything done outside of that core, it’s a struggle.”
He said he wasn’t criticizing his fellow councillors or municipal staff. And he didn’t want to provide examples of some of the struggles he’s had.
But he said he feels the Liverpool area is over-represented on council, with five councillors who have some part of their district in Liverpool, Milton or Brooklyn. With the redrawn boundaries, that’s down to four.
“Whoever goes into council from rural areas is just going to have to fight harder to try to get their areas recognized. Maybe if councilors coming in from Liverpool, Brooklyn, Milton, realize that they’re not funding 100 per cent of the cost of what happens in Queens County, but they’re expecting 100 per cent of the expenditures that are happening in Queens County, it’s not a fair and equitable solution for anybody.”
Brown said he was also frustrated with some of the criticism he’s received online and in person since he became councillor. He said he welcomes feedback from constituents, but he said sometimes it goes too far.
“There’s a lot of anger with people, in the public. They seem to think that because you’re a public figure they can say whatever they want to you. And council is not a high-paid position to put up with the amount of hours and the abuse that we’ve been taking from some people. So I’m just not interested in doing another four years of that.”
“I’m happy with what I did. I think council has done the best job that they could for the most people. It’s just most of the work is done in the centre of town and that frustrates me.”
District 3 Coun. Maddie Charlton will be trying for a second term. She joins District 4 Coun. Vicki Amirault and District 5 Coun. Jack Fancy, who have announced they will seek re-election.
Because of the boundary changes, Charlton will be running in District 2 this time. But it’s essentially the same area as she represents now in District 3, with the addition of part of White Point Road.
Amirault will still run in District 4, but her area now includes Danesville and East Port Medway. It also has less of Brooklyn.
And Fancy, who represents the Milton area, has said he plans to run in District 7, which is where he grew up. That area includes much of north Queens, including Caledonia and Kejimkujik National Park.
In 2020, Charlton made history at age 29 as the youngest person elected to Region of Queens council.
She told QCCR that she’s enjoyed her past four years in municipal politics.
“Although it has certainly come with challenges,” she said.
“I have certainly learned a lot over these last four years and I really think that younger representation at the council table is important.”
Along with bringing a more youthful perspective, she says she’s proud she’s been able to advocate for better access to council meetings for the public. She pushed for a regular evening meeting to make it easier for people to attend, as well as the upgrades necessary to livestream meetings.
Charlton says she believes that council’s communication with the public has improved.
“That was one of things that as a resident before I ran was something that was really obvious there was a bit of a disconnect there. There certainly have been improvements. And those are some that I’m really proud of as well. Besides the standing evening council meetings, I championed audio and video upgrades because people couldn’t hear when they tuned into the meetings. And I think it’s really important that residents can do that and access those meetings and listen to those meetings if they can’t be in the room. So I would say that’s still not perfect. But I think it has gotten better.”
Charlton said that communication breakdowns were partially responsible for the controversies over a new library.
“I would say that we need to slow down before we speed up. … We hit the gas too fast and different information was evolving over cost and I think if we would have just slowed down, we could have pieced things together in a more sensible way to then confidently make a plan that we could endorse going forward.”
David Brown says he regrets that council didn’t commit to a new library. They decided instead to move the library, at least temporarily, to the business development centre on White Point Road.
“I would have liked to have seen a library built. Having an actual brick and mortar standalone library built and not having that happen and the way the process worked out was one of my biggest frustrations in the last term.”
Charlton says that if she’s re-elected, she’d like to advocate for more youth programming and recreational opportunities. And she says she hopes other young women take a crack at council this time around.
Brown says he’s not sure what he’ll do next, but he’s going to enjoy his free time. His advice for people who want to run for council? Do your homework and be prepared to stick up for your district.
“Just to be prepared it’s not going to be the happy smiley place that you think it’s going to be,” he says.
“You’re in for a fight every day. If you want to get your area recognized and you want an equitable amount of expenditures for all areas of the county, it’s not going to go smoothly. There’s a fight involved with it. There’s a lot of argument. You have to do your research, know the policies, know what you want going in and know what your consittunts want going in because you’re representing those constituents, you’re not representing your own personal interests. … You have to know what all those constituents want so you can make the best decision for the most people.”
The municipal election is Oct. 19. This year, for the first time, Queens County voters will be able to vote in person or online.