Four Black people won ridings in Nova Scotia election, but no Indigenous member was elected
Newly elected NDP MLAs Suzy Hansen and Lisa Lachance along with Nova Scotia NDP Leader Gary Burrill, left to right, attend a protest after the city removed tents and small shelters for homeless people in Halifax on Aug. 18, 2021.The representation of Black and female members has risen notably in Nova Scotia’s legislature following Tuesday’s provincial election, but no one who identifies as Indigenous was elected in the vote – or at any point in the province’s history.
“We know what it’s like to be pushed out of our homes, when you recall what happened in Africville,” she said, referring to a Black community in Halifax where residents were evicted from 1964 to 1970 in the name of urban renewal. Twenty women were elected in Tuesday’s vote, representing 36 per cent of the 55 members. That’s compared to the 15 women who were in the former 51-seat legislature, representing 29 per cent of all members.
Nadine Bernard, a Liberal candidate in the Cape Breton riding of Victoria-The Lakes, said Thursday she believes her candidacy as an Indigenous person made a difference, as it introduced her community to the normalcy of having a Mi’kmaq person run for office.Over a century of Indigenous bands dealing directly with federal governments has led to less involvement with provincial politics, despite the crucial role it plays in everyday Mi’kmaq lives, Bernard said.
In addition, all of the major parties say they have increased efforts to recruit candidates from diverse backgrounds, either though education of riding executives or – in the case of the NDP – a requirement that local party officials provide “comprehensive evidence” of having approached a diverse group of people.
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