Members of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party are poised to elect their first female leader after the deadline to enter the race closed with two candidates.
Party members are poised to elect their first female leader
;Resize=76 "2 candidates vying for N.S. Liberal leadership")
Michael Gorman · CBC News
·
Listen to this article
Estimated 2 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
;Resize%3D860)
Members of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party are poised to elect their first female leader after the deadline to enter the race closed Tuesday with two candidates.
Lunenburg West MLA Becky Druhan and Richmond County deputy warden Amanda Mombourquette are the two people vying for the job.
Mombourquette made her intentions official in June, following it up with a campaign launch event last week in St. Peter’s where she announced longtime Liberal and former MLA Richie Mann as her campaign chair and touted an endorsement from former premier Stephen McNeil.
Druhan entered politics following a 2021 provincial election victory as a Progressive Conservative and served in Premier Tim Houston’s cabinet until she left the party last October to sit as an Independent.
In May, Druhan announced she was joining the Liberal caucus and, at the time, said her intention was to also seek the party leadership.
People with knowledge of her plans say she has submitted the necessary paperwork and is waiting for the vetting process to be complete before making an official announcement in the near future.
The Liberals have been without a permanent leader since the 2024 provincial election that saw them reduced to just two seats. The party’s leader at the time, Zach Churchill, resigned following the election in which he lost his seat.
Since then, Sydney-Membertou MLA Derek Mombourquette — who is not related to Amanda Mombourquette — served as interim leader before trading off with his caucus colleague, Timberlea-Prospect MLA Iain Rankin.
The voting period for the election will run from Nov. 16-21, with the winner being announced at a convention on Nov. 21.
The Liberals are the only one of the province’s three major parties never to have had a female leader.
MORE TOP STORIES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
;)
Michael Gorman covers the Nova Scotia legislature for CBC, with additional focuses on health care and rural communities. Contact him with story ideas at michael.gorman@cbc.ca
