Global News has declared Mumilaaq Qaqqaq of the NDP the winner of Nunavut with over 41% of the vote.
Nunavut is the largest federal electoral district by land area in Canada, and the largest electoral district represented by one legislator in the world. It also holds the highest percentage of Inuit and Aboriginal people in the country.
The incumbent MP, Hunter Tootoo, made headlines during his time as MP first by beating the Conservative incumbent, Leona Aglukkaq, who was also a cabinet minister. Aglukkaq will be trying to win the riding back for the Tories on Oct. 21.
Tootoo was appointed Minister of Fisheries by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but quit the position not even a year later because of an addiction issue. He also abruptly left Trudeau’s caucus — making him an independent MP. He announced in July he wouldn’t be seeking re-election.
The current Liberal Candidate, Megan Pizzo-Lyall, is a former Iqaliut city councillor.
Candidates
- Liberals – Megan Pizzo Lyall
- Conservatives – Leona Aglukkaq
- NDP – Mumilaaq Qaqqaq
- Green – Douglas Roy
Geography
The riding of Nunavut extends through the entire Nunavut Territory.
History
The district was created in 1976 as Nunatsiaq from parts of the Northwest Territories, and was renamed Nunavut in 1996. The boundaries were redistributed in 1999 as part of the Nunavut Act when Nunavut became its own Territory.
The riding was Conservative from 2008 through 2015 under MP Leona Aglukkaq, but the riding went Liberal in 2015 when Hunter Tootoo won the vote.
Demographics
Total population: 35,580
Aboriginal: 30,420
European: 8,315
The statistics above are from Statistics Canada’s census in 2016. In the census, a person can have more than one ethnic origin, which allows for the sum of the demographics to be more than the total.
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