Nova Scotia Election: Yarmouth candidates

Quick take: Liberal MLA Zach Churchill is the incumbent. This is expected to be a safe seat for the Grits.

READ MORE: All our Nova Scotia Election 2017 coverage

Candidates

Liberal: Churchill is the incumbent MLA in this riding. He was first elected in a 2010 byelection after PC MLA Richard Hurlburt resigned. He currently serves as minister of municipal affairs and minister of Communications Nova Scotia under the Liberal government. He also served as natural resources minister from 2013 to 2015. Prior to the 2010 byelection, he was a policy analyst.

Progressive Conservative: Mitch Bonnar is the president of Tri-Star Charters, a charter service in Yarmouth, and was co-owner for 27 years of Tri-Star Industries, an ambulance and emergency equipment supplier in the region. He is also involved in several community groups.

NDP: David Olie is the Yarmouth town crier and is involved in the YARC Playhouse and Arts Centre. In 2009, Olie ran for the NDP against Hurlburt.

Green: Jim Laverie is a nurse at Yarmouth Hospital. He has also has volunteered for several community events including the Day of Remembrance and the Day of Mourning.

Riding background

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History: Churchill won the riding in 2013 with 82.3 per cent of the vote. He originally won the riding in a byelection in 2010 with 50.67 per cent of the vote after PC MLA Richard Hurlburt resigned amid a spending scandal case that crossed party lines. Prior to the charges, Hurlburt held the riding from 1999 until 2010.

Boundaries: The riding covers much of Yarmouth County, including the Municipality of the District of Yarmouth, the town of Yarmouth and the Mi’kmaq community of the Yarmouth Reserve.

Demographics: Yarmouth is considered the regional economic hub for the southwest part of the province. Fish and fish processing is done in this riding, making up part of the district’s main industries of trade and services.