Mike Savage (politician)

Last updated

Mike Savage
ONS
LG Savage Official Portrait 2024.jpg
Official portrait, 2024
34th Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia
Assumed office
December 13, 2024
Political party Independent
Other political
affiliations
Liberal (until 2012)
Parent
Residence(s) Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
Education Bachelor of Arts (History)
Alma mater Dalhousie University
Profession
  • Politician
  • businessman
Signature Mike Savage signature.png

Michael John Savage ONS (born May 13, 1960) is a Canadian politician who is currently serving as the 34th lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia. The son of John Savage, he immigrated to Canada with his father from Belfast, Northern Ireland at the age of six. Michael Savage served three terms as a Liberal member of Parliament for the riding of Dartmouth—Cole Harbour from 2004 to 2011, before serving three terms as the mayor of the Halifax Regional Municipality from 2012 to 2024. His appointment as lieutenant governor was announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in October 2024.

Contents

Early life and education

Savage was born on May 13, 1960 in Belfast, Northern Ireland to parents Margaret and John Savage. He has six siblings: three brothers and three sisters. [2] Savage spent his early years in South Wales before immigrating to Canada with his parents at the age of six, when his family began living in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. [3] He grew up in Dartmouth, graduating from Prince Andrew High School [4] and later Dalhousie University with a Bachelor of Arts in history. [2] His father John was the mayor of Dartmouth from 1985 to 1992, and the 23rd premier of Nova Scotia from 1993 to 1997. [5]

Career

Early career

After graduating from Dalhousie University, Savage spent the first two decades of his career working in business in Halifax. He worked as a general manager for S. Cunard & Co. from 1986 until 1997, when he became the sales and marketing director for Nova Scotia Power. Savage became vice-president of the corporate recruiting firm Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette in 2002. [2]

Savage has served as president of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia, and was a member of the board of directors of the IWK. [6] He has been involved with community organizations such as the Red Cross, Literacy Nova Scotia, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, and the Neptune Theatre board. [7]

Political career

Member of Parliament

Savage began his career in politics when he ran in the riding of Dartmouth in the 1997 federal election. [8] He finished second behind Wendy Lill of the New Democratic Party (NDP). [9]

He was elected Member of Parliament for Dartmouth—Cole Harbour in June 2004. [10] He served on the committee which worked to enact the Civil Marriage Act in 2005, which legalized same-sex marriage across Canada. [2] He was re-elected in 2006 and 2008. [2]

On December 4, 2006, it was reported that Savage was considering a run for the leadership of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party. [11] On December 19, Savage announced that he would not seek the leadership. [12]

On May 2, 2011, Savage was defeated in the federal election by Robert Chisholm of the NDP; his riding was the only one in Nova Scotia not to re-elect the incumbent candidate in that election. [13] Savage said at the time that he was proud of the work he had accomplished in Parliament, stating "in six weeks [of the campaign], no one told me I was a rotten person. But I understand how politics works, and you accept the judgment of the voters." [13] After losing his seat, Savage became the vice-president of the Halifax public relations company M5 Communications and worked again in the private sector before going on to run for Mayor of Halifax. [2]

Mayor of Halifax

Savage at the 2023 Halifax International Security Conference during his time as mayor 2023 Halifax International Security Forum - Mike Savage - 53470464069.jpg
Savage at the 2023 Halifax International Security Conference during his time as mayor

On February 6, 2012, Savage announced that he would run for Mayor of Halifax Regional Municipality in that year's municipal elections. [14] Savage was elected Mayor of Halifax on October 20, 2012, [15] and sworn in on November 6. [16] He was re-elected in the 2016 election [17] and 2020 election. [18]

During his time as Mayor, Savage supported a Canadian Football League (CFL) team coming to Halifax and construction of a corresponding stadium. [19] By 2022 he was less optimistic about the prospects of a CFL team coming to Halifax, stating while there was interest from the CFL, getting a team in Halifax "just [isn't] going to happen the way we would have envisioned it five or six years ago." [20] Savage suggested that construction of a stadium as originally conceived was no longer seen as desirable, and if the CFL were to come to Halifax it would more likely be in the Downtown area. [20]

Savage has expressed a need for the federal government to provide more support to municipalities for housing. In 2023, as Mayor of Halifax and chair of the Big City Mayors' Caucus, he claimed that municipal governments were under significant financial pressure. Savage stated that although the federal government had accomplished a lot for Canadian cities, municipalities still required more support to meet goals for housing. [21]

On February 13, 2024, Savage announced that he would not be running for a fourth term as mayor in the municipal elections later that year. In a speech at Halifax City Hall, he said being mayor of Halifax was "the best job [he] ever had". [22] Savage discussed the improved relationship between the municipality and the Mi'kmaq community during his tenure, highlighting a key moment as council's decision to remove the statue of Edward Cornwallis. [22] He was succeeded as mayor by Andy Fillmore on November 5, 2024. [23]

Lieutenant governor

External videos
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg Former Halifax mayor Mike Savage is sworn in as Nova Scotia’s 34th lieutenant-governor (1:00 min), The Canadian Press. Retrieved May 21, 2025 – via YouTube

On October 13, 2024, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Savage would be the next lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia, replacing Arthur LeBlanc. [24] In preparation for the role, Savage held meetings with former lieutenant governors as well as former Governor General David Johnston. [25] He was sworn in on December 13, 2024, [26] and delivered his first throne speech [a] when a new session of the legislature opened on February 14, 2025. [28] As part of his role as lieutenant governor, Savage resides at Government House in Halifax and is responsible for conferring awards such as the Order of Nova Scotia and the King Charles III Coronation Medal. [29]

Personal life

Savage is married to his wife, Darlene Savage; they have two children. [30] He met his wife during his second year of university at Dalhousie, and once remarked that the best gift he ever received was a pair of Frye boots gifted by her for their first Christmas together as a couple. [31]

Honours

Viceregal styles of
Mike Savage
(2024–present)
Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia Emblem post 2022.png
Reference style
  • His Honour the Honourable
  • Son Honneur l'Honorable
Spoken style
  • Your Honour
  • Votre Honneur

Ribbon bars of Mike Savage

Order of St John (UK) ribbon -vector.svg
QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal CAD.jpg UK King Charles III Coronation Medal BAR.svg Order Nova Scotia ribbon bar.svg

RibbonDescriptionNotes
QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal CAD.jpg Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
UK King Charles III Coronation Medal BAR.svg King Charles III Coronation Medal
Order Nova Scotia ribbon bar.svg Order of Nova Scotia
Order of St John (UK) ribbon -vector.svg Knight of the Order of Saint John

Electoral record

Municipal

2020 Halifax mayoral election
CandidateVotes%
Mike Savage102,73580.16
Matt Whitman13,49710.53
Total128,160100
Registered voters/turnout322,23239.77
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality [35]
2016 Halifax mayoral election
CandidateVotes%
Mike Savage62,09668.38
Lil Macpherson28,71931.62
Total90,815100.00
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality [36]
2012 Halifax mayoral election
CandidateVotes%
Mike Savage63,54757.75
Tom Martin21,91219.91
Fred Connors20,27718.43
Other candidates43043.91
Total110,040100.00
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality [37]

Federal

2011 Canadian federal election : Dartmouth—Cole Harbour
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
New Democratic Robert Chisholm 15,67836.27+4.73$51,111.67
Liberal Mike Savage 15,18135.12-4.37$70,147.67
Conservative Wanda Webber10,70224.76+2.30$51,126.57
Green Paul Shreenan1,6623.85-2.11$0.00
Total valid votes/expense limit43,22399.41 $83,954.73
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots2550.59-0.01
Turnout43,47861.45+2.72
Eligible voters70,756
New Democratic gain from Liberal Swing +4.55
2008 Canadian federal election : Dartmouth—Cole Harbour
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Liberal Mike Savage 16,01639.49-2.83$63,901.48
New Democratic Brad Pye12,79331.55-0.95$56,900.80
Conservative Wanda Webber9,10922.46-0.36$64,746.58
Green Paul Shreenan2,4175.96+3.69$444.09
Christian Heritage George Campbell2190.54$351.78
Total valid votes/expense limit40,554100.0   $80,942
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots2450.60+0.23
Turnout40,79958.73-3.71
Eligible voters69,469
Liberal hold Swing -0.94
2006 Canadian federal election : Dartmouth—Cole Harbour
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Liberal Mike Savage 19,02742.32+0.25$67,910.96
New Democratic Peter Mancini 14,61232.50±0$60,717.57
Conservative Robert A. Campbell10,25922.82+1.72$41,775.58
Green Elizabeth Perry1,0052.24-0.92$582.70
Marxist–Leninist Charles Spurr560.12-0.05none listed
Total valid votes/expense limit44,959100.0   $76,265
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots1660.37-0.07
Turnout45,12562.44+0.51
Eligible voters72,264
Liberal hold Swing +0.12
2004 Canadian federal election : Dartmouth—Cole Harbour
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Liberal Mike Savage 17,42542.07+8.18$62,046.28
New Democratic Susan MacAlpine-Gillis13,46332.50-2.82$59,335.19
Conservative Michael L. MacDonald 8,73921.10-9.34$54,707.19
Green Michael Marshall1,3113.16$200.00
Progressive Canadian Tracy Parsons4151.00$1,140.15
Marxist–Leninist Charles Spurr700.17none listed
Total valid votes/expense limit41,423100.0   $73,009
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots1810.44
Turnout41,60461.93
Eligible voters67,176
Liberal notional gain from New Democratic Swing +5.50
Changes from 2000 are based on redistributed results. Conservative Party change is based on the combination of Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party totals.
1997 Canadian federal election : Dartmouth—Cole Harbour
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Wendy Lill 12,32632.57+25.48
Liberal Mike Savage 10,29827.21-23.60
Progressive Conservative Rob McCleave10,18326.91+3.33
Reform John Cody4,44611.75-3.87
Independent Cliff Williams4381.16-0.63
Natural Law Claude Viau1560.41-0.71
Total valid votes37,847100.00
Change for Independent candidate Cliff Williams is shown based on his results as a National Party candidate in 1993.

See also

References

Notes

  1. Throne speeches in Nova Scotia are written by the government and delivered by the Lieutenant Governor at the beginning of every new session of the legislature. [27]

Citations

Sources

Further reading

Articles

Audio and video

Order of precedence
Preceded by Order of precedence in Nova Scotia
as of 2025
Succeeded by
Tim Houston, Premier of Nova Scotia