In Halifax riding, NDP hopes to fend off Liberals, Conservatives to reclaim familiar seat

Preston Mulligan · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 03, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

The national riding of Halifax, wherever a byelection was called weeks earlier Parliament was dissolved, whitethorn basal out as being the longest run successful this election.

But the riding near vacant past twelvemonth by Liberal MP Andy Fillmore is pursuing a inclination happening crossed the country: issues astir housing, affordability and wellness attraction are being overshadowed by a commercialized warfare with the United States and questions implicit Canadian sovereignty.

It's a shift that has reshaped voting intentions dramatically implicit the past 2 months, according to pundits, and overmuch of it astatine the disbursal of the NDP.

Just inquire Lisa Roberts. The NDP campaigner is making her 2nd tally astatine the spot and says there's a relation for an NDP parliamentarian from Atlantic Canada "even if we don't signifier government."

The erstwhile NDP MLA for Halifax Needham jumped into the national fray successful 2021, moving against Fillmore successful his 3rd election. Roberts came person to triumph than the erstwhile 2 NDP contenders who mislaid to Fillmore, who was archetypal elected successful 2015 erstwhile Justin Trudeau's Liberals swept each spot successful Atlantic Canada.

Today the Halifax riding is simply a antithetic race. There is nary incumbent, the Liberal Party is being led by a mostly untested politician, and southbound of the border, an American president is threatening annexation and imposing tariffs.

"I mean, polls are a truly comic thing," Roberts said successful an interview. "In the autumn [of 2024], erstwhile they showed maine 80 per cent likely to triumph Halifax, that wasn't real. In the aforesaid mode that present erstwhile they're projecting that the NDP is going to suffer absorption status, that's besides not real.

"It's not arsenic existent arsenic what we cognize by knocking connected doors."

A dependable extracurricular of government

Regardless of her religion successful the polls, Roberts acknowledges the tide has turned dramatically successful a substance of weeks.

While she whitethorn not beryllium feeling that front-runner energy, she's hoping immoderate contented is inactive astatine play here. It's a riding that for galore years was synonymous with the sanction Alexa McDonough. And aft her, Megan Leslie. Both are New Democrats who sat successful the third-party backbenches, but enjoyed large enactment backmost present astatine home. No Conservative has held Halifax since the Mulroney question successful the mid-1980s.

"I besides person a precise beardown idiosyncratic representation of however I felt erstwhile I was represented, peculiarly by Megan Leslie. And she wasn't portion of the government," said Roberts.

"But I felt similar idiosyncratic spoke astir my concerns that I person successful the satellite and that I person for this state and that I person for this community, and that meant a batch to me. So that's what I'm offering to people."

Roberts's Liberal contender jumped into the contention conscionable arsenic voting intentions began to shift. Shannon Miedema won the information conscionable 1 time earlier past premier curate Justin Trudeau called the byelection for Halifax. In the ensuing weeks, Mark Carney was named Liberal person and a wide predetermination was called, efficaciously cancelling the byelection.

On the doorstep, Miedema said Haligonians who've voted NDP successful the past are promising enactment for the Liberals this clip around.

Fighting for 'shared values'

"I deliberation immoderate radical that are traditionally successful the NDP campy are benignant of looking astatine the nationalist representation close present and hold that some NDP and Liberal Party members don't privation [Conservative Leader Pierre] Poilievre successful power," Miedema told CBC News.

"And truthful what bash we request to deliberation astir to guarantee that that doesn't happen? Because we don't privation the large advancement that we person made — our shared values — taken away."

Miedema is primitively from Ottawa. She moved to Nova Scotia successful 2003 and present lives successful Dartmouth. She near her station arsenic the manager of situation and clime alteration for the Halifax Regional Municipality where she helped make HalifACT, the city's clime enactment plan.

She was a champion of the user c taxation — until she wasn't.

"It was a astute portion of policy," she said. "But I deliberation that the Liberal Party of Canada had to perceive to Canadians that it wasn't moving for them for a assortment of reasons and I respect that. The important happening is to fig retired a way guardant to inactive conscionable our planetary commitments."

Alex Marland, a authorities prof astatine Acadia University, doesn't spot the c tax — oregon immoderate different accepted predetermination issue — arsenic a precedence for voters close now. Of greater importance is determining who champion tin support Canadian interests and the Maple Leaf.

"And frankly, the NDP is not successful the crippled erstwhile they're talking astir things that impact the Canadian flag," said Marland.

"The NDP is seen arsenic a spot subordinate successful each of that and it's truly a dynamic betwixt the Liberals and Conservatives. So I conscionable spot the NDP precise overmuch getting squeezed out."

Mark Boudreau, a communications nonrecreational and longtime assemblage volunteer, is carrying the Conservative emblem successful the riding of Halifax. His unit declined a petition from CBC News for an interview, saying Boudreau is "focused connected connecting with residents astatine their doorsteps" instead.

Two different candidates are moving successful the riding: Amethyste Hamel-Gregory for the Greens and Maricar Aliasut for the People's Party of Canada.