1999 Nova Scotia general election

1999 Nova Scotia general election
← outgoing members members →
52 seats of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly ; 27 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	68.12% 1.35pp
	Riding map of Nova Scotia showing winning parties
Premier before election; Russell MacLellan; Liberal	Premier after election ; John Hamm; Progressive Conservative

The 1999 Nova Scotia general election was held on July 27, 1999, to elect members of the 58th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The government was defeated on a money bill on June 18, and the Nova Scotia House of Assembly was dissolved by Lieutenant Governor James Kinley. It was won by the Progressive Conservative party, led by Dr. John Hamm. They received a majority of 30 seats compared to 11 seats by the NDP and 11 by the Liberals.

Campaign

The Halifax Daily News ran an article which asked each party leader personal questions, including one about whether the candidate had ever been convicted of a criminal offence. NDP Leader Robert Chisholm said no in response, however, several days later it was revealed that Chisholm had a past criminal record for driving under the influence of alcohol when he was 19 years old. Chisholm claimed that he lied because he did not want his daughter to find out about his past.^[2]

Results

Results by party

↓
30	11	11
Progressive Conservative	New Democratic	Liberal

Official results^[3]^[4]
Party		Party leader	# of candidates	Seats				Popular vote
Party		Party leader	# of candidates	1998	Dissolution	Elected	Change	#	%	Change (pp)
	Progressive Conservative	John Hamm	52	14	13	30	+16	169,383	38.93%	+9.33%
	New Democratic	Robert Chisholm	52	19	19	11	-8	129,474	29.76%	-4.67%
	Liberal	Russell MacLellan	52	19	19	11	-8	128,795	29.60%	-5.50%
	Nova Scotia Party	Jack Friis	17	0	0	0	0	3,153	0.72%	–
	Independent		5	0	1	0	0	1,278	0.29%	0.00%
	Vacant				0
Total valid votes								432,083	99.31%	+0.12%

Blank and invalid ballots								2,983	0.69%	+0.12%
Total			178	52	52	52	–	435,066	100.00%	–
Registered voters / turnout								638,655	68.12%	-1.35%

Popular vote

PC			38.93%
New Democratic			29.76%
Liberal			29.60%
Nova Scotia Party			0.72%
Independent			0.29%

Seats summary

PC			57.69%
New Democratic			21.15%
Liberal			21.15%

Results by region

Party name			HRM	C.B.	Valley	S. Shore	Fundy	Central	Total
Parties winning seats in the legislature:
	Progressive Conservative	Seats:	7	1	6	6	5	5	30
	Progressive Conservative	Popular vote:	36.64%	17.26%	48.06%	46.24%	55.96%	46.00%	38.93%
	New Democratic Party	Seats:	9	1	—	—	1	—	11
	New Democratic Party	Popular vote:	37.24%	33.77%	21.47%	23.49%	24.14%	25.57%	29.76%
	Liberal	Seats:	1	8	1	1	—	—	11
	Liberal	Popular vote:	24.68%	47.53%	29.64%	29.45%	19.03%	28.16%	29.60%
Parties not winning seats in the legislature:
	Nova Scotia Party	Popular vote:	1.35%	—	0.83%	0.82%	0.21%	0.27%	0.72%
	Independents	Popular vote:	0.09%	1.44%	—	—	0.66%	—	0.29%
Total seats:			17	9	7	7	6	5	52

Retiring incumbents

Liberal

Progressive Conservative

Independent

Reeves Matheson, Cape Breton East

Nominated candidates

Legend
bold denotes party leader
† denotes an incumbent who is not running for re-election or was defeated in nomination contest

Valley

Electoral district	Candidates									Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent	Incumbent
Annapolis		Stephen McNeil 3,265 35.22%		Tom Clahane 1,708 18.43%		Frank Chipman 4,026 43.43%		Paul Mann 271 2.92%			Laurie Montgomery †
Clare		Wayne Gaudet 2,705 43.76%		Don Melanson 1,078 17.44%		Paul Comeau 2,355 38.10%		Anne Marie Boyer 43 0.70%			Wayne Gaudet
Digby—Annapolis		Vivian O'Neil 1,550 24.09%		Steve Downes 1,105 17.17%		Gordon Balser 3,780 58.74%					Gordon Balser
Hants West		Joe Robertson 2,015 22.25%		Dick Terfry 1,764 19.48%		Ron Russell 5,276 58.27%					Ron Russell
Kings North		Peter Hill 1,975 22.42%		Neil H. McNeil 2,513 28.53%		Mark Parent 4,321 49.05%					George Archibald †
Kings South		Robbie Harrison 3,213 33.23%		Mary DeWolfe 2,567 26.55%		David Morse 3,890 40.23%					Robbie Harrison
Kings West		Don Clarke 2,346 28.70%		Jacquie DeMestral 1,629 19.93%		Jon Carey 4,033 49.34%		Frances Adams 166 2.03%			George Moody†

South Shore

Electoral district	Candidates									Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent	Incumbent
Argyle		Karen Kravfe 820 15.55%		Belinda Tucker 343 6.51%		Neil LeBlanc 4,060 77.01%		Oscar Harris 49 0.93%			Neil LeBlanc
Chester—St. Margaret's		Karen Willis Duerden 1,971 21.28%		Hinrich Bitter-Suermann 3,098 33.45%		John Chataway 4,193 45.27%					Hinrich Bitter-Suermann
Lunenburg		Lila O'Connor 2,344 26.29%		Marilyn B. Crook 1,982 22.23%		Michael Baker 4,590 51.48%					Michael Baker
Lunenburg West		Don Downe 4,248 45.46%		Eric Hustvedt 1,846 19.75%		Jerry Swain 3,251 34.79%					Don Downe
Queens		Eddie Whitty 1,296 20.77%		John Wiles 1,498 24.00%		Kerry Morash 3,447 55.23%					John Leefe †
Shelburne		Clifford Huskilson 3,206 41.54%		Dianne Nickerson 1,306 16.92%		Cecil O'Donnell 3,206 41.54%					Clifford Huskilson
Yarmouth		Phil DeMille 2,605 28.21%		John Deveau 3,079 33.34%		Richard Hurlburt 3,141 34.02%		Brian W. Hurlburt 409 4.43%			John Deveau

Fundy-Northeast

Electoral district	Candidates								Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia	Independent	Incumbent
Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley		Leo Stacey 1,052 12.97%		Jim Harpell 1,591 19.62%		Brooke Taylor 5,465 67.40%				Brooke Taylor
Colchester North		John Davidson 2,274 27.03%		Ralph Martin 2,411 28.66%		Bill Langille 3,728 44.31%				Ed Lorraine †
Cumberland North		Kathy Langille 1,595 19.02%		Doug Wilson 856 10.21%		Ernie Fage 5,936 70.78%				Ernie Fage
Cumberland South		John Harrison 1,000 13.39%		Scott McKee 941 12.60%		Murray Scott 5,527 74.01%				Murray Scott
Hants East		Sara Stewart 2,150 23.33%		John MacDonell 3,985 43.25%		Reese Morash 3,079 33.42%				John MacDonell
Truro—Bible Hill		Matthew Graham 1,613 18.21%		Ibel Scammell 2,499 28.21%		Jamie Muir 4,747 53.58%				Jamie Muir

Central Halifax

Electoral district	Candidates										Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent		Incumbent
Halifax Bedford Basin		Jack Hardiman 2,935 27.74%		Errol Gaum 2,946 27.85%		Mary Ann McGrath 4,489 42.43%		Janice Lively 209 1.98%				Gerry Fogarty †
Halifax Chebucto		Royden Trainer 2,286 27.27%		Howard Epstein 3,159 37.69%		Sean Phillips 2,811 33.54%		Hilda M. Stevens 126 1.50%				Howard Epstein
Halifax Citadel		Ed Kinley 2,752 29.88%		Peter Delefes 2,958 32.11%		Jane Purves 3,392 36.83%		Grace Patterson 52 0.56%		Art Canning 57 0.62%		Peter Delefes
Halifax Fairview		Greta Murtagh 1,888 24.15%		Eileen O'Connell 3,615 46.23%		Narayana Swamy 2,117 27.08%		Maria Alexandridis 199 2.55%				Eileen O'Connell
Halifax Needham		Mike Rogers 1,970 25.12%		Maureen MacDonald 3,525 44.95%		Linda Carvery 2,185 27.86%		Scott Higgins 162 2.07%				Maureen MacDonald

Suburban Halifax

Electoral district	Candidates										Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent		Incumbent
Bedford—Fall River		Gerry St. Armand 2,197 19.17%		Jane Earle 2,700 23.55%		Peter Christie 6,566 57.28%						Francene Cosman †
Halifax Atlantic		David Melnick 1,458 16.53%		Robert Chisholm 4,266 48.37%		Bruce Cooke 2,794 31.68%		Gerald Rodgers 234 2.65%		Golda M. Redden 68 0.77%		Robert Chisholm
Sackville—Beaver Bank		Bill MacDonald 2,276 25.86%		Rosemary Godin 2,951 33.53%		Barry Barnet 3,573 40.60%						Rosemary Godin
Sackville—Cobequid		Kevin Perkins 1,235 14.59%		John Holm 4,787 56.57%		Wade Marshall 2,440 28.83%						John Holm
Timberlea—Prospect		Vicki Brown 2,171 23.34%		Bill Estabrooks 4,356 46.83%		Ken Fralick 2,600 27.95%		Ken Bumstead 174 1.87%				Bill Estabrooks

Dartmouth/Cole Harbour/Eastern Shore

Electoral district	Candidates									Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent	Incumbent
Cole Harbour—Eastern Passage		Colin MacEachern 2,216 23.39%		Kevin Deveaux 3,721 39.27%		Nadune Cooper Mont 3,539 37.35%					Kevin Deveaux
Dartmouth—Cole Harbour		Peter Foy 2,150 25.79%		Darrell Dexter 3,164 37.95%		Greg Frampton 2,750 32.98%		Rufus Peacock 274 3.29%			Darrell Dexter
Dartmouth East		Jim Smith 2,975 37.39%		Heather Henderson 2,272 28.55%		Terry Degen 2,710 34.06%					Jim Smith
Dartmouth North		Frank Cameron 1,746 24.74%		Jerry Pye 3,105 44.01%		Jane MacKay 2,060 29.20%		Susan Livingstone 145 2.05%			Jerry Pye
Dartmouth South		Audrey Goodyer 2,322 25.83%		Don Chard 3,011 33.50%		Tim Olive 3,656 40.67%					Don Chard
Eastern Shore		Keith Colwell 2,695 31.01%		Mary-Alice Tzagarakis 1,970 22.67%		Bill Dooks 3,637 41.85%		Jack Friis 388 4.46%			Keith Colwell
Preston		Wendell Thomas 509 13.38%		Yvonne Atwell 1,496 39.32%		David Hendsbee 1,800 47.31%					Yvonne Atwell

Central Nova

Electoral district	Candidates									Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia		Independent	Incumbent
Antigonish		Hyland Fraser 4,058 39.18%		Charlene Long 2,229 21.52%		Angus MacIsaac 4,070 39.30%					Hyland Fraser
Guysborough—Port Hawkesbury		Ray White 3,151 40.19%		Wendy Panagopoulos 1,267 16.16%		Ron Chisholm 3,285 41.90%					Ray White
Pictou Centre		Marie Maxwell 1,171 13.78%		Jeff Callaghan 1,850 21.76%		John Hamm 5,479 64.46%					John Hamm
Pictou East		Lynn MacDonald 1,285 15.76%		Andy Thompson 2,388 29.30%		Jim DeWolfe 4,478 54.94%					Jim DeWolfe
Pictou West		Paul Landry 2,109 25.47%		Charlie Parker 2,955 35.69%		Muriel Baillie 3,102 37.46%		D. Ed Berringer 114 1.38%			Charlie Parker

Cape Breton

Electoral district	Candidates									Incumbent
Electoral district	Liberal		NDP		PC		Nova Scotia	Independent		Incumbent
Cape Breton Centre		Susan Deruelle Marsh 2,985 39.94%		Frank Corbett 4,042 54.09%		John Morrissey 446 5.97%					Frank Corbett
Cape Breton East		Dave Wilson 3,704 40.12%		Cecil Saccary 3,699 40.06%		Brad Kerr 1,043 11.30%			Gerard Burke 787 8.52%		Reeves Matheson †
Cape Breton North		Russell MacLellan 4,222 48.69%		Archie MacKinnon 2,587 29.83%		Murray Johnston 1,863 21.48%					Russell MacLellan
Cape Breton Nova		Paul MacEwan 4,004 53.44%		Gordie Gosse 3,253 43.42%		Harold Dorrington 235 3.14%					Paul MacEwan
Cape Breton South		Manning MacDonald 5,356 62.90%		Elizabeth Cusack 2,451 28.78%		Leland Lewis 708 8.31%					Manning MacDonald
Cape Breton—The Lakes		Brian Boudreau 3,715 43.70%		Helen MacDonald 3,614 42.51%		Ken Langley 1,173 13.80%					Helen MacDonald
Cape Breton West		Russell MacKinnon 5,094 51.83%		Brian Slaney 3,359 34.18%		Joe Boudreau 1,375 13.99%					Russell MacKinnon
Inverness		Charlie MacDonald 3,549 39.27%		Roy Yipp 1,612 17.84%		Rodney MacDonald 3,876 42.89%					Charlie MacDonald
Richmond		Michel Samson 3,105 47.01%		Wilma Conrod 1,595 24.15%		Joseph MacPhee 1,905 28.84%					Michel Samson
Victoria		Kennie MacAskill 2,263 49.46%		Nancy MacKeigan 772 16.87%		Anna Curtis-Steele 1,174 25.66%			Osborne Burke 229 5.01% Stemer MacLeod 137 2.99%		Kennie MacAskill

References

^ 4 April 2000 deferred by-election for Cape Breton East seat, won by Liberal candidate
^ "Chisholm admits to drunk driving conviction". CBC News. July 23, 1996. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
^ "Summary, by Political Affiliation of Valid Votes Cast and Candidates Elected Provincial General Elections, 1960-1999" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
^ "Elections Returns 1999 Recapitulation" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved November 11, 2021.

Government of Nova Scotia. "Summary Results from 1867 to 2011" (PDF). Elections Statistics. Elections Nova Scotia. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 3, 2013. Retrieved October 1, 2013.

External links

Elections Nova Scotia
Halifax Herald 1999 election website via Internet Archive.

[1] 4 April 2000 deferred by-election for Cape Breton East seat, won by Liberal candidate

[2] "Chisholm admits to drunk driving conviction". CBC News. July 23, 1996. Retrieved October 28, 2023.

[3] "Summary, by Political Affiliation of Valid Votes Cast and Candidates Elected Provincial General Elections, 1960-1999" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved November 11, 2021.

[4] "Elections Returns 1999 Recapitulation" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved November 11, 2021.

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v t e Elections and referendums in Nova Scotia
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Referendums	1929 2004
See also: List of Nova Scotia by-elections