New Brunswick heads to the polls in snap election during coronavirus pandemic

New Brunswick is heading to the polls on September 14 after a snap election call from Premier Blaine Higgs.

The New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Leader called the election Monday after failing to secure a stability agreement among the opposition parties in the province’s legislature.

Higgs had pitched the power-sharing agreement as a deal that would ensure the Tory government survived until the next fixed election date in October 2022 or the novel coronavirus pandemic ran its course.

It will be the first provincial general election to be held during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite two-and-a-half days of debate and meetings, that deal fell through.

Liberal Leader Kevin Vickers wanted to see the government make policy concessions in order to sign onto a deal but that did not happen.

2:07 Blaine Higgs announces New Brunswick residents will be headed back to the polls

• Blaine Higgs announces New Brunswick residents will be headed back to the polls
• Green Party’s David Coon says he’s ‘concerned’ about ‘unneeded’ provincial election
• Blaine Higgs says upcoming provincial election will be ‘an election like no other’
• Higgs says Vickers was under a lot of pressure ‘not to get an agreement’
• Kris Austen calls snap election call a ‘head-scratcher’
• Kevin Vickers decries election that New Brunswick ‘neither wants or needs’
• Election announcement ‘both a surprise and not a surprise’: politics expert

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The Liberal caucus pulled out of the talks on Friday, with Vickers comparing the negotiation to having a gun to his head.

Higgs had floated a Friday deadline for the negotiations, at which point if a deal wasn’t reached, he’d strongly consider sending the province to the polls.

On Monday, Higgs went to Brenda Murphy, lieutenant-governor of the province, who dissolved the legislature.

1:50 N.B. premier proposes stability agreement in order to avoid triggering election during coronavirus

At a press briefing, Higgs said his candidates will not be going door to door and will not be leaving paper brochures either.

He also said that he spoke to the chief medical officer of health, Dr. Jennifer Russells, earlier and she said that a general election can be held safely.

“This is an election about stability and substance,” said Higgs.

Following Higgs’ call for an official election, Liberal leader Kevin Vickers spoke to the media, and called this an election that the province “neither wants or needs.”

READ MORE: New Brunswick reports no new COVID-19 cases; updates rules on social distancing

Vickers said it is irresponsible to have an election, especially if a major outbreak occurs during the writ period, and says the decision to have one rests with Higgs alone.

He also announced that his first concrete promise once elected is to open a public inquiry into systemic racism in the province.

At dissolution, the Tories held 20 seats in the provincial legislature, while there were 20 Liberals, three People’s Alliance members, three Greens, one Independent and two vacancies.

Three byelections that would’ve been held by mid-October will now occur during the general election.

Elections New Brunswick has spent the past few months gearing up for this scenario, encouraging residents earlier in August to update their voter information as speculation about an impending election continued.

“We want people to call us if any of the information, such as the name of an individual listed as living at that address, is incorrect,” chief electoral officer Kim Poffenroth said at the time.