2011 Newfoundland and Labrador general election

Background

Progressive Conservative Party

Liberal Party

New Democratic Party

Party leadership

Following Liberal leader Gerry Reid's defeat in the 2007 general election he resigned as the party's leader. The party subsequently chose Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair MHA Yvonne Jones as interim leader of the party and therefore the Official Opposition Leader in the House of Assembly. The party delayed calling a leadership election until 2010, and when nominations for the leadership closed on July 30, 2010, Jones was the only candidate to come forward and was acclaimed leader of the party. Only weeks later on August 13, 2010, Jones announced she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and would be taking time off to undergo treatment. During her time off Liberal House Leader Kelvin Parsons took over for Jones on an interim basis. The Liberal convention that would swear Jones in as leader was rescheduled from October 2010, to May 2011, due to her illness. She was sworn in as leader on May 28, 2011. On August 8, 2011, it was announced that Jones would step down as leader the following day on the advice of her doctor. The Liberal Party executive chose former MHA and cabinet minister Kevin Aylward as her successor on August 14, 2011.

On November 25, 2010, Premier Danny Williams made the surprise announcement that he would resign as leader and premier the next week. On December 3, 2010, Kathy Dunderdale, Williams' Deputy Premier, was sworn in as Newfoundland and Labrador's tenth Premier. Although she had originally stated she would not seek the permanent leadership she announced on December 30, 2010, she would run for the Progressive Conservative leadership. Her announcement came after several high-profile cabinet ministers announced they would not run and endorsed her candidacy. In January 2011, Dunderdale was acclaimed party leader when she was the only eligible candidate to seek the leadership. On April 2, 2011, she was sworn in as leader of the Progressive Conservatives.

Timeline

2007

• October 9, 2007: Elections held for the Newfoundland and Labrador Legislature in the 46th General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador.
• November 6, 2007: Progressive Conservative Susan Sullivan wins a deferred election in Grand Falls-Windsor-Buchans.
• November 13, 2007: Liberal leader Gerry Reid resign after failing to be re-elected.
• November 15, 2007: The Liberal Party select Yvonne Jones as interim leader of the party.

2008

• May 21, 2008: Tom Rideout resigns as Deputy Premier, Government House Leader and Minister of Fisheries, in a dispute with the Premier's Office.
• June 4, 2008: Cape St. Francis MHA Jack Byrne dies.
• June 30, 2008: Baie Verte-Springdale MHA Tom Rideout resigns his seat.
• August 27, 2008: Two by-elections in Cape St. Francis and Baie Verte-Springdale are won by Progressive Conservative candidates Kevin Parsons and Kevin Pollard.

2009

• October 2, 2009: The Straits – White Bay North MHA Trevor Taylor resigns from Cabinet and his seat.
• October 7, 2009: Terra Nova MHA Paul Oram resign from Cabinet and his seat.
• October 27, 2009: A by-election in The Straits – White Bay North elects Liberal Marshall Dean.
• November 26, 2009: A by-election in Terra Nova elects PC Sandy Collins.

2010

• January 29, 2010: Topsail MHA Elizabeth Marshall resigns her seat to be appointed to the Senate of Canada.
• March 16, 2010: A by-election in Topsail elects PC Paul Davis.
• July 30, 2010: Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair MHA Yvonne Jones is acclaimed Liberal leader after being the only candidate for the party's leader.
• August 13, 2010: Yvonne Jones announces she has been diagnosed with breast cancer and that MHA Kelvin Parsons will serve as interim leader while she is receiving treatment.
• October 3, 2010: Conception Bay East - Bell Island MHA and Minister Dianne Whalen dies.
• November 25, 2010: Premier Danny Williams, Humber West MHA announces his retirement, effective December 3, 2010. Deputy Premier Kathy Dunderdale will be the Premier of the province in the interim.
• December 2, 2010: Progressive Conservative candidate David Brazil is elected MHA of Conception Bay East - Bell Island.
• December 3, 2010: Kathy Dunderdale is sworn in as the province's tenth Premier upon the resignation of Danny Williams, the first woman to do so.

2011

• February 15, 2011: Progressive Conservative candidate Vaughn Granter is elected MHA of Humber West.
• April 2, 2011: Kathy Dunderdale is sworn in as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.
• May 28, 2011: Yvonne Jones is sworn in as leader of the Liberal Party.
• August 9, 2011: Jones steps down as leader of the Liberal Party for health reasons.
• August 14, 2011: Kevin Aylward is chosen as leader of the Liberal Party.
• September 19, 2011: Election call, Kathy Dunderdale asks Lieutenant Governor John Crosbie to dissolve the legislature.

Campaign

At 10:00 am on September 19, 2011, Premier Dunderdale met with Lieutenant Governor John Crosbie who dissolved the 46th General Assembly, officially launching the election campaign. It was widely expected that the PCs would win the election.

Campaign slogans

The parties campaign slogans for the 2011 election are:

• Liberal Party – "We Can Do Better"
• New Democratic Party – "It's Time"
• Progressive Conservative – "New Energy"

Issues

;Muskrat Falls The tentative deal to develop the $6.2 billion Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project in Labrador was negotiated by the Progressive Conservative government in November 2010. The Liberal Party opposes the deal, saying it is bad for the province because it will increase the province's debt and will see electricity rates increase for consumers. The NDP have had similar concerns and both party leaders have called for spending on the project to stop until more independent analysis' can be conducted to see if the current deal is the best one for the province.

;Public sector pension increases The Liberal Party announced they would provide a one-time increase to public sector pensioners of 2.5%, as well as provide annual increases equivalent to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) up to 2%. While Aylward has said increasing payments would cost $13 million in the first year and about $10 million extra for each additional year, the Department of Finance stated that the plan would add $1.2 billion in additional liabilities to the pension plan. Dunderdale slammed the Liberal Party's plan calling it 'foolhardy'.

Controversies

;Dunderdale confrontation with fisheries workers Toward the end of the campaign, Tory Leader Kathy Dunderdale was confronted by frustrated fisheries workers in Marystown in the district of Burin-Placentia West held by Minister of Fisheries & Aquaculture Clyde Jackman. Dunderdale, accompanied by Jackman and Grand Bank district MHA Darin King, refused to negotiate with the workers until after the election. Jackman went on to win the election by only 40 votes.

;Dumaresque comment Controversy arose at the St. John's Board of Trade debate when Liberal candidate Danny Dumaresque was asked about an appeal by the mayor of St. John's for a new financial arrangement between the city and the provincial government. Dumaresque stated that "there are a hell of a lot more priorities outside the overpass that need to be addressed before we start forking more money over to the City of St. John's." The comment led to divisions within the party, with Liberal candidate Drew Brown stating it was an “idiotic comment by an idiotic man.”

Election summary

! rowspan="2" colspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|Party ! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|Party leader !rowspan="2"|Candidates ! colspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|Seats ! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|Popular vote |- !2011 !Change !# !% !% Change |- |}

Results by region

Results by district

Bold incumbents indicates party leaders. The premier's name is boldfaced and italicized.

• All candidate names are those on the official list of confirmed candidates; names in media or on party website may differ slightly.
• Names in boldface type represent party leaders.
• † represents that the incumbent is not running again.
• § represents that the incumbent was defeated for nomination.
• ₰ represents that the incumbent ran in another district and lost the nomination
• ‡ represents that the incumbent is running in a different district.

St. John's

|- 55.10% turnout || |John Dinn 3,347 58.32% | |Brian Hanlon 454 7.91% | |Paul Boundridge 1,927 33.58% ||

| |John Noseworthy 1,550 31.17% | | Drew Brown 173 3.48% || |Lorraine Michael 3,239 65.13% ||

| |Shawn Skinner 2,041 43.13% | |Carly Bigelow 109 2.30% || | Gerry Rogers 2,569 54.29% ||

| |Ed Buckingham 2,175 40.77% | |Mike Duffy 367 6.88% || |George Murphy 2,766 51.85% ||

| |Bob Ridgley 1,905 40.29% | |Elizabeth Scammel Reynolds 201 4.25% || |Dale Kirby 2,595 54.89% ||

| |Trevor Hickey 163 3.17% | |Keith Dunne 1,994 38.79% ||

| |George Joyce 890 19.21% | |Chris Pickard 1,729 37.32% ||

| |Sheila Miller 536 9.52% | |Dave Sullivan 1,708 30.33% || |Kathy Dunderdale |}

St. John's suburbs

|- 65.53% turnout || |Kevin Parsons 4,132 59.06% | |Joy Buckle 204 2.92% | |Geoff Gallant 2,623 37.49% ||

| |Kim Ploughman 213 3.82% | |Bill Kavanagh 2,290 41.11% ||

| |Cynthia Layden Barron 354 6.73% | |Noah Davis-Power 1,263 24.00% ||

| |Maurice Budgell 363 6.90% | |Kurtis Coombs 994 18.89% ||

| |Norm Snelgrove 299 6.86% | |John Riche 1,675 38.45% ||

| |Nic Reid 280 4.95% | |Brian Nolan 1,507 26.65% || |Paul Davis |}

Avalon and Burin Peninsulas

|- 65.34% turnout || |Calvin Peach 3,005 60.12% | |Pam Pardy Ghent 626 12.53% | |Gabe Ryan 1,356 27.13% | | ||

| |Jacqueline Mullett 202 3.85% | |Julie Mitchell 2,498 47.58% | | ||

| |Phillip Earle 774 14.72% | |Shawn Hyde 445 8.46% | |Kyle Brookings (Independent) 22 0.42% ||

| |Dianne Randell 181 3.58% | |Chris Molloy 1,224 24.21% | | ||

| |Carol Anne Haley 1,336 27.91% | |Wally Layman 167 3.49% | | ||

| |Bern Hickey 580 11.17% | |Mike Maher 990 19.06% | | ||

| |Todd Squires 1,055 20.85% | |Trish Dodd 1,475 29.14% | | ||

| |Leanne Hussey 2,022 33.78% | |Sarah Downey 396 6.62% | | ||

| |Barry Snow 1,114 23.86% | |Sheina Lerman 659 14.11% | | || |Charlene Johnson |}

Central Newfoundland

|- 59.79% turnout || |Kevin Pollard 2,552 52.65% | |Neil Ward 1,827 37.69% | |Tim Howse 456 9.41% | | ||

| |Paul Kean 1,518 40.75% | |John Coaker 467 12.54% | | ||

| |Johanna Ryan Guy 532 13.45% | |Darryl Johnson 1,198 30.30% | | ||

| |Jim Samson 654 15.92% | |Grant Hemeon 629 15.32% | | ||

| |Barry Warren 1,415 30.80% | |Lukas Norman 770 16.76% | | ||

| |Wayne Morris 1,540 31.20% | |John Whelan 313 6.27% | | ||

| |Merv Wiseman 1,165 31.25% | |Clyde Bridger 418 11.21% | | ||

| |Todd Manuel 891 20.54% | |Lloyd Snow 988 22.78% | | ||

| |Ryan Lane 631 14.26% | |Robin Brentnall 648 14.64% | |John Baird (Independent) 346 7.82% ||

| |Danny Dumaresque 1,070 26.12% | |Tree Walsh 252 6.15% | | ||

| |Brad Cabana 344 7.15% | |Vanessa Wiseman 1,247 25.92% | | || |Ross Wiseman |}

Western and Southern Newfoundland

|- 69.98% turnout | |Terry Loder 2,003 37.05% || |Eddie Joyce 2,760 51.05% | |Tony Adey 625 11.56% | | ||

| |Colin Short 1,850 43.14% || |Andrew Parsons 2,228 51.96% | |Matt Fuchs 197 4.59% | | ||

| |Eric Skinner 596 15.42% | |Susan Skinner 665 17.21% | | ||

| |Charles Murphy 378 8.44% | |Marc Best 593 13.24% | | ||

| |Darryl Kelly 2,541 46.72% || |Dwight Ball 2,609 47.97% | |Sheldon Hynes 270 4.96% | | ||

| |Donna Luther 832 21.12% | |Jordan Stringer 765 19.42% | | ||

| |Kate Mitchell-Mansfield 954 21.46% | |Jamie Brace 860 19.35% | | ||

| |Wallace Young 1,779 44.05% || |Jim Bennett 1816 44.94% | |Diane Ryan 437 10.82% | | ||

| |Kevin Aylward 1,396 32.56% | |Bernice Hancock 705 16.45% | |Dean Simon (Independent) 62 1.45% ||

| |Selma Pike 1,336 31.46% | |Marshall Dean 1,382 32.54% || |Chris Mitchelmore 1,511 35.58% | | || |Marshall Dean |}

Labrador

|- 67.89% turnout | |Glen Acreman 576 26.77% || |Yvonne Jones 1,516 71.07% | |Bill Cooper 44 2.06% ||

| |Karen Oldford 593 16.35% | |Tom Harris 1,182 32.58% ||

| |Chris Montague 531 15.10% | |Arlene Michelin-Pittman 1,209 34.38% ||

| |Patty Pottle 586 37.66% || |Randy Edmunds 744 47.81% | |Alex Saunders 186 11.95% || |Patty Pottle |}

MHAs not running again

MHA's who announced they were not seeking re-election

Liberal

- Roland Butler (Port de grave)

• Kelvin Parsons (Burgeo- La Polie)

Progressive Conservative

• Jim Baker (Labrador west)

• Dave Denine (Mount Pearl south) https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/denine-not-seeking-re-election-1.1000674

-Roger Fitzgerald (Bonavista South) https://www.saltwire.com/atlantic-canada/fitzgeralds-farewell-122883https://www.saltwire.com/atlantic-canada/fitzgeralds-farewell-122883

-Harry Harding (Bonavista North)

• John Hickey (Lake Melville) https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/john-hickey-running-for-mayor-again-1.4257132

• Shelia Osborne (St. John's west)

Opinion polls

References

Political parties

• Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party

References

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