Politics of Nova Scotia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Polity type | Province within afederalparliamentaryconstitutional monarchy |
| Constitution | Constitution of Canada |
| Legislative branch | |
| Name | General Assembly |
| Type | Unicameral |
| Meeting place | Province House,Halifax |
| Presiding officer | Speaker of the House of Assembly |
| Executive branch | |
| Head of state | |
| Currently | KingCharles III represented by Michael Savage, Lieutenant Governor |
| Head of government | |
| Currently | Premier Tim Houston |
| Appointer | Lieutenant Governor |
| Cabinet | |
| Name | Executive Council |
| Leader | Premier (as President of the Executive Council) |
| Appointer | Lieutenant Governor |
| Headquarters | Halifax |
| Judicial branch | |
| Court of Appeal | |
| Chief judge | Michael Wood |
| Seat | Law Courts, Halifax |
The politics of the Canadian province ofNova Scotia take place within the framework of aWestminster-styleparliamentaryconstitutional monarchy. As Canada's head of state and monarch,Charles III is the sovereign of the province in his capacity asKing in Right of Nova Scotia; his duties in Nova Scotia are carried out by theLieutenant Governor,Michael Savage. TheGeneral Assembly is the legislature, consisting of the Lieutenant Governor and fifty-five members representing their electoral districts in theHouse of Assembly.[1] TheGovernment is headed by thePremier,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 atProvince House since 1819.[2]
The role of the Crown is both legal and practical; it functions inNova Scotia in the same wayit does in all of Canada's other provinces, being the centre of a constitutional construct in which the institutions of government acting under the sovereign's authority share the power of the whole.[3] It is thus the foundation of theexecutive,legislative, andjudicial branches of the province.[4] TheCanadian monarch—since 8 September 2022,KingCharles III—is represented and his duties carried out by thelieutenant governor of Nova Scotia, whose direct participation in governance is limited by theconventional stipulations ofconstitutional monarchy, with most related powers entrusted for exercise by the elected parliamentarians, theministers of the Crown generally drawn from among them, and thejudges andjustices of the peace.[5]
TheNova Scotia House of Assembly,[a] or Legislative Assembly, is the sole chamber of the unicameralGeneral Assembly of Nova Scotia. The assembly is the oldest in Canada, having first sat in 1758;[6] in 1848, it was the site of the firstresponsible government in theBritish Empire. Bills passed by the House of Assembly are given royal assent by theLieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia[7] in the name of theKing in Right of Nova Scotia.
When established in 1758, theGeneral Assembly consisted of the Crown represented by the Governor (Lieutenant Governor post-confederation), the appointedNova Scotia Council holding both executive and legislative duties and the elected House of Assembly (lower chamber). In 1838, the Council was replaced by anexecutive council with the executive function and alegislative council with the legislative functions based on the House of Lords. In 1928, the Legislative Council was abolished and the members pensioned off, resulting in a unicameral legislature with the House of Assembly as the sole chamber.
There are 55members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) representing 55electoral districts.[8] Members nearly always represent one of the three main political parties of the province: theNova Scotia Liberal Party, theProgressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia, andNova Scotia New Democratic Party.
TheGovernment of Nova Scotia exercises the executive power. The chief body of the Government is theExecutive Council, also known as Cabinet.[9] The Premier of Nova Scotia is President of the Executive Council.[9]
| Government | Anti Confederation | Liberal | Con | Liberal | ||||||||||
| Party | 1867 | 1871 | 1874 | 1878 | 1882 | 1886 | 1890 | 1897 | 1897 | 1901 | 1906 | 1911 | 1916 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | 36 | 24 | 22 | 6 | 24 | 28 | 29 | 25 | 34 | 36 | 32 | 26 | 31 | |
| Conservative | 2 | 14 | 12 | 32 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 12 | |
| Independent | 4 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||||
| Total | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 37 | 38 | 37 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 43 | |
| Government | Liberal | Con | Liberal | PC | ||||||||||
| Party | 1920 | 1925 | 1928 | 1933 | 1937 | 1941 | 1945 | 1949 | 1953 | 1956 | 1960 | 1963 | 1967 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | 29 | 3 | 18 | 22 | 25 | 22 | 28 | 27 | 22 | 18 | 15 | 4 | 6 | |
| Conservative | 3 | 40 | 24 | 8 | 5 | 5 | ||||||||
| Progressive Conservative | 8 | 13 | 24 | 27 | 39 | 40 | ||||||||
| United Farmers | 6 | |||||||||||||
| Labour | 5 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Cooperative Commonwealth Federation | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Total | 43 | 43 | 43 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 37 | 37 | 43 | 43 | 43 | 46 | |
| Government | Liberal | PC | Liberal | PC | NDP | Liberal | PC | ||||||||||
| Party | 1970 | 1974 | 1978 | 1981 | 1984 | 1988 | 1993 | 1998 | 1999 | 2003 | 2006 | 2009 | 2013 | 2017 | 2021 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | 23 | 31 | 17 | 13 | 6 | 21 | 40 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 33 | 27 | 17 | 2 | |
| Progressive Conservative | 21 | 12 | 31 | 37 | 42 | 28 | 9 | 14 | 30 | 25 | 23 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 31 | 43 | |
| New Democratic | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 11 | 15 | 20 | 31 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 9 | |
| Cape Breton Labour | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Independent | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||||
| Total | 46 | 46 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 51 | 51 | 55 | 55 | |
Of the registered voters in 2017, 53.4% voted. Voter turnout has decreased from 82% turnout in 1960.[10]
| Party | 1968 | 1972 | 1974 | 1979 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1993 | 1997 | 2000 | 2004 | 2006 | 2008 | 2011 | 2015 | 2019 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 11 | 10 | 8 | ||
| PC | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 4 | |||||||||
| NDP | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||
| Reform/Alliance | ||||||||||||||||||
| Conservative | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Total | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | |
Articles related to Politics of Nova Scotia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Crown | | |
|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant Governor | ||
| Premier | ||
| Opposition leader | ||
| House of Assembly | ||
| Speaker of the Assembly | ||
| Political parties | ||
| Elections | ||
| Other provinces and territories | ||
.svg)
