INVERNESS COUNTY: The riding of Inverness will not be left out of the Progressive Conservative government.
With 39 of 39 polls reporting, Elections Nova Scotia (ENS) is reporting that Incumbent and PC House Leader Allan MacMaster took the riding with 4,833 votes, while Liberal candidate Damian MacInnis finished in second place with 3,112 votes and NDP candidate Joanna Clark had 698 votes.
According to ENS, voter turnout was 61.49 per cent.
MacMaster said he was expecting a PC minority government, with his party netting 26 or 27 seats, but was soon pleasantly surprised.
“When I was seeing the numbers, I was surprised how quickly and decisively things happened,” he told The Reporter.
Regionally, MacMaster suspected change was afoot but he expressed surprise at the defeats of two Liberal cabinet ministers and long-time MLAs.
“I could sense that people wanted change and there was some desire to see new people and represent those areas. At the end of the day, one never knows until people vote, and I will say that yes, I was a little surprised with how decisive people were in Antigonish and Guysborough,” he said. “Anybody that puts their name on a ballot, there’s always the chance that you lose, and often people do lose, more people lose than win in politics.”
As for Inverness, the long-time PC MLA said he expected to do well.
“I always appreciate hearing from people and when I was going around and campaigning, I was getting a positive feeling from people. But I never take things for granted and things are always changing so I was happy with the result, obviously, but grateful that it came as strong as it was,” MacMaster noted.
In the 2017 provincial election, MacMaster took 61.9 per cent of the vote, coming away with a 2,340 vote majority, and this year, he had a vote share of 55.92 per cent, according to ENS.
MacMaster was first elected in 2009, after former Premier Rodney MacDonald held the riding for the Progressive Conservatives.
As finance critic, a long-serving MLA and house leader, MacMaster could be in a good position for a cabinet post.
“I know the leader, I’m sure he has a lot on his mind today, I know he’s announced his transition team, and I think all of us are waiting patiently to hear from them, and to hear from Premier-designate Houston,” he said. “We’re respectful that coming into office, people can’t imagine how much he has on his plate today. Those are decisions that he’ll be making and I’ll be there in the capacity that he wants me.”
Because Richmond was restored as a protected Acadian riding, the Town of Port Hawkesbury was returned to the riding of Inverness, where it was prior to electoral boundary changes imposed by the NDP government of Darrell Dexter in 2012 which were deemed unconstitutional by the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal five years later.
“I’m looking forward to the opportunity that’s before the province here and before myself,” he added. “Things are always changing, I have a lot of enthusiasm for what I’m doing. I’m looking forward to this opportunity to try to help our region. I’ll be working hard and hoping to make things better, and to help as many people as I can along the way.”