Progressive Conservative Leader David Alward has won his seat of Carleton in the New Brunswick election.
At a campaign rally in Moncton on Monday, Alward asked voters to give him another chance as premier and told supporters that while he had to make difficult decisions since being elected in 2010, he wants another mandate to continue the work his party started.
Party supporters chanted “four more years” as Alward encouraged voters to get out to the polls and cast their ballots.
Alward said he felt his party had gained momentum in the final days of campaigning.
Polls opened at 10am Monday following a 32-day campaign focused largely on the economy and the province’s natural resources.
New Brunswick has one of the worst employment records in Canada – at 8.7 per cent in August – and jobs and the economy quickly emerged as the hot button issues in the campaign.
Alward’s PCs and Brian Gallant’s Liberals offered residents two very different choices in economic policy throughout the campaign.
Gallant has promised to spend $900 million on infrastructure – a move he said will create more than 1,700 jobs a year.
Alward’s plan to bring jobs into the province rely on investment in the shale gas industry – a divisive issue in the province – as well as development in mining, forestry and construction of the Energy East pipeline, which would see oil shipped from Alberta to Saint John.
Alward cast his ballot in Woodstock on election day – he won in the new riding of Carleton, which was created from parts of the Woodstock and Carleton ridings in last year’s redistribution of electoral boundaries.
Polls closed at 8pm (click here for live election results).
At dissolution, the PC held 41 seats, the Liberals 13 and one Independent seat. Redistribution will see the total number of seats cut from 55 to 49 this election.
With files from Nick Logan and The Canadian Press
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