Message from President MacLean: Election Outcome

Good afternoon,

As most of you already know, in the early hours of the morning today, Stephen McNeil’s Liberal government was re-elected with a slim majority.

I am sure many of you are disappointed with this outcome. But I take consolation from a few things:

1. Their win was a nail-biter. This election was not a walk in the park for the Liberals;
2. McNeil’s Liberals lost some key seats, including many in Metro Halifax;
3. They also lost some key cabinet ministers, like Joanne Bernard (Minister of Community Services) and Michel Samson (who served as Minister of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism; Minister of Acadian Affairs; and Minister of Energy);
4. More women than ever before will serve as MLAs in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.

The one thing I feel affected the outcome of this election was the abysmal voter turnout of just 53.55 per cent. The fact that so many Nova Scotians decided not to even bother participating in the electoral process is disheartening, and shows how disengaged the public is with our political system.

I realize, however, that many of our members did take the time to vote and educate themselves on the issues and candidates, and I would like to thank you for doing so. In this election in particular, it is quite clear that every single vote mattered.

Overall, I am hopeful that this election may serve as a sobering experience for Premier McNeil and his colleagues, and that our newly elected MLAs will work together for the benefit of all Nova Scotians. Rest assured, I will be calling on you all over the next four years to help us hold this government accountable, should they choose to continue with their agenda of austerity and union busting.

In solidarity,

Jason MacLean

President, NSGEU