Summary: This is a riding to watch. Liberal Scott Andrews kept his seat here in 2011, but was suspended from the party in 2014 over allegations of personal misconduct, and is now running as an independent. As well, the riding boundaries have changed, and if those boundaries had been in place in 2011, the Conservatives would have won the seat.
Boundaries: This riding encompasses the southeast tip of Newfoundland, south of St. John’s. The northwest corner of the old riding is now part of Bonavista-Burin-Trinity.
Last Election: Liberal Scott Andrews won by 1,259 votes, defeating Conservative Fabian Manning for a second time in a row.
However, if Avalon had its new boundaries in the 2011 election, the Conservative Party would have taken it by 3.9 per cent (based on polling results).
History: In the last 50 years, the Liberals have won all but three elections in this area.
Demographics: In the 2011 census, 99.19 per cent of people listed English as their mother tongue—the highest number in all of Canada.
Candidates
Conservative: Lorraine Barnett, the province’s Regional Affairs Director for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
NDP: Jeannie Baldwin, Regional Executive VP Atlantic, PSAC
Liberal: Ken McDonald, Mayor of Conception Bay South
Green: Krista Byrne-Puumala, small business owner
Independent: Scott Andrews, MP since 2008
Strength in Democracy: Jennifer McCreath