List of post-confederation Nova Scotia general elections

Last updated

Number of seats won by major parties at each election
Conservative
Liberal
NDP
Other NS elections2.gif
Number of seats won by major parties at each election
ConservativeLiberalNDPOther
Electoral results by parties and independent MLAs (as a percentage of total House of Assembly seats) from 1933 to 2009. Nova Scotia general elections, 1933-2009 1.0.png
Electoral results by parties and independent MLAs (as a percentage of total House of Assembly seats) from 1933 to 2009.

This article provides a summary of results for the general elections to the Canadian province of Nova Scotia 's unicameral legislative body, the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. The number of seats has varied over time, from a low of thirty during the 1930s and early 1940s, to the current high of fifty-two. This article only covers elections since Nova Scotia became part of the newly formed Canadian Confederation in 1867. Prior to that, Nova Scotia was a British colony. The Nova Scotia House of Assembly dates back to 1758, and Nova Scotia became the first British colony to be granted responsible government from London in 1848.

Contents

The chart on the upper right provides a graphical summary of the results, with the most recent elections towards the right. It shows how the Liberal party (red) dominated the province's early political history, winning nineteen of the first twenty-two elections from 1867 to 1953; and that since 1953, the Conservatives (blue) have been the most successful party, winning eleven of the fifteen elections since then. The New Democratic Party (orange), after winning Official Opposition status in four consecutive elections, finally achieved government for the first time in the 2009 election.

Summary of results

The table below shows the total number of seats won by the major political parties at each election. It also shows the percentage of the vote obtained by the major political parties at each election, if greater than 0.1%. The winning party's totals are shown in bold. To date, no party has formed a government that did not have the largest share of the vote. Full details on any election are linked via the number of the election at the start of the row.

ElectionTotal
seats
Conservative [A] Liberal NDP [B] Other
SeatsVote (%)SeatsVote (%)SeatsVote (%)SeatsSeat-winning partyVote (%)
1st September 18, 1867382 [C] 38.5 [C] 36 [D] 58.6 [D] 2.9
2nd May 16, 1871381443.72452.24.0
3rd December 17, 1874381243.62255.04Independents1.4
4th September 17, 1878383251.7645.13.1
5th June 20, 1882381446.92451.81.3
6th June 1886371043.62854.71.6
7th May 189038946.72952.21.0
8th March 1894371347.32551.90.8
9th April 13, 189738344.43455.01Independent0.5
10th October 2, 190138241.73656.71.5
11th June 20, 190638442.13253.22Independents4.6
12th June 14, 1911381245.42651.13.5
13th June 20, 1916431248.83150.40.8
14th July 27, 192043324.72944.4516.96 United Farmers 14.0
15th June 25, 1925434060.9336.32.8
16th October 1, 1928432451.71847.211.1
17th August 22, 193330845.92252.61.5
18th June 20, 193730546.02552.91.1
19th October 28, 194130540.32252.737.0
20th October 23, 194530033.52852.7213.60.1
21st June 9, 194937839.22751.029.60.1
22nd May 26, 1953371343.62249.026.90.5
23rd October 30, 1956432448.61848.213.00.1
24th June 7, 1960432748.31542.618.90.2
25th October 8, 1963433956.2439.74.1
26th May 30, 1967464052.8641.85.20.2
27th October 13, 1970462146.92346.126.70.2
28th April 2, 1974461238.63147.9313.00.5
29th September 19, 1978523145.81739.4414.40.4
30th October 6, 1981523747.51333.2118.11Cape Breton Labour1.2
31st November 6, 1984524250.6631.3315.91Cape Breton Labour2.2 [E]
32nd September 6, 1988522843.42139.6215.81 Cape Breton Labour 1.1
33rd May 25, 199352931.14049.7317.70.9
34th March 24, 1998521429.81935.31934.62.4
35th July 27, 1999523039.21129.81130.01.1
36th August 5, 2003522536.31231.51531.01.2
37th June 13, 2006522339.6923.42034.62.4
38th June 9, 2009521024.51127.23145.33.0
39th October 8, 2013511126.33345.7726.81.2
40th May 30, 2017511735.782739.51721.413.3
41st August 18, 2021553138.441736.67620.931Independent1.17
42nd November 26, 2024554352.49222.69922.171Independent1.18

Notes

A Includes results for Progressive Conservatives.
B Includes results for Co-operative Commonwealth Federation prior to 1963; and also results for the Labour party prior to 1937.
C Includes Pro Confederation.
D Includes Anti-Confederates.
E Includes 2.0% for Cape Breton Labour Party.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Tupper</span> Prime Minister of Canada in 1896

Sir Charles Tupper, 1st Baronet was a Canadian Father of Confederation who served as the sixth prime minister of Canada from May 1 to July 8, 1896. As the premier of Nova Scotia from 1864 to 1867, he led Nova Scotia into Confederation. He briefly served as the Canadian prime minister, from seven days after parliament had been dissolved, until he resigned on July 8, 1896, following his party's loss in the 1896 Canadian federal election. He is the only medical doctor to have ever held the office of prime minister of Canada and his 68-day tenure as prime minister is the shortest in Canadian history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2003 Nova Scotia general election</span> General election

The 2003 Nova Scotia general election was held on August 5, 2003, to elect members of the 59th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The ruling Progressive Conservative Party, led by Premier John Hamm, was reduced to a minority government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1867 Canadian federal election</span>

The 1867 Canadian federal election was held from August 7 to September 20, 1867, and was the first election of Canada. It was held to elect members representing electoral districts in the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec to the House of Commons of the 1st Canadian Parliament. The provinces of Manitoba (1870) and British Columbia (1871) were created during the term of the 1st Parliament of Canada and were not part of this election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nova Scotia New Democratic Party</span> Political party in Canada

The Nova Scotia New Democratic Party is a social democratic political party in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the provincial section for the province of the federal New Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-Confederation Party</span> Political party in Canada

Anti-Confederation was the name used in what is now the Maritimes by several parties opposed to Canadian Confederation. The Anti-Confederation parties were accordingly opposed by the Confederation Party, that is, the Conservative and Liberal-Conservative parties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nova Scotia Liberal Party</span> Political party in Nova Scotia, Canada

The Nova Scotia Liberal Party is a centrist provincial political party in Nova Scotia, Canada and the provincial section of the Liberal Party of Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition in Nova Scotia, under the leadership of Zach Churchill. The party was in power most recently from the 2013 election until the 2021 election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Progressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia</span> Canadian political party

The Progressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia, more commonly known as the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia, is a political party in Nova Scotia, Canada. Like most conservative parties in Atlantic Canada, it has been historically associated with the Red Tory faction of Canadian conservatism. The party is currently led by Pictou East MLA Tim Houston. The party won a majority government in the 2021 provincial election. He called a snap election in 2024, increasing his party's majority mandate. The Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia and the Conservative Party of Canada are two separate entities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edgar Nelson Rhodes</span> Canadian politician (1877–1942)

Edgar Nelson Rhodes,, was a Canadian parliamentarian from Nova Scotia who served as Premier of Nova Scotia from 1925 to 1930.

There have been various movements within Canada for secession.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 Nova Scotia general election</span>

The 2006 Nova Scotia general election was held on June 13, 2006 to elect members of the 60th House of Assembly of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada.

The politics of Nova Scotia take place within the framework of a Westminster-style parliamentary constitutional monarchy. As Canada's head of state and monarch, Charles III is the sovereign of the province in his capacity as King in Right of Nova Scotia; his duties in Nova Scotia are carried out by the Lieutenant Governor, Arthur LeBlanc. The General Assembly is the legislature, consisting of the Lieutenant Governor and fifty-five members representing their electoral districts in the House of Assembly. The Government is headed by the Premier, Tim Houston, who took office on August 31, 2021. The capital city is Halifax, home to the Lieutenant Governor, the House of Assembly, and the Government. The House of Assembly has met in Halifax at Province House since 1819.

The Government of Nova Scotia is the government of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The powers and structure of the province are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term "government" refers broadly to the cabinet of the day chosen from the Nova Scotia House of Assembly and the non-political staff within each provincial department or agency – that is, the civil service.

This article covers the history of the Liberal Party of Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral history of Charles Tupper</span> List of elections featuring Charles Tupper as a candidate

This article is the Electoral history of Sir Charles Tupper, the sixth Prime Minister of Canada. A Conservative, he became prime minister upon the resignation of Prime Minister Sir Mackenzie Bowell over the Manitoba Schools Question in 1896. Tupper was the shortest-serving prime minister, with a term of only 69 days. He led his party in two general elections and lost both, to Sir Wilfrid Laurier

References