HALIFAX – It’s municipal election day across Nova Scotia, and Halifax will soon have a new mayor for the first time in over a decade.
Electors in 48 of Nova Scotia’s 49 municipalities will cast ballots today, except in the town of Mulgrave, where the mayor and four councillors have been acclaimed.
Unofficial results of the race in the Halifax Regional Municipality are expected to be shared tonight after the polls close at 7 p.m.
Frontrunners to take the mayor’s seat are former Liberal MP Andy Fillmore — who resigned from his seat in Parliament — and longtime Halifax Coun. Waye Mason.
Fillmore is a former city planner who was first elected as a Halifax member of Parliament in the 2015 election that brought Justin Trudeau to power.
Mason is a former business owner who worked for years in the local music industry, including as executive director of the Halifax Pop Explosion music festival, before he was elected to council in 2012.
The most recent poll, conducted Oct. 1-3 by Narrative Research for the Halifax Chamber of Commerce, found 24 per cent of respondents favoured Fillmore, while 19 per cent planned to back Mason.
The poll results suggested Coun. Pam Lovelace was in third, with 12 per cent of respondents saying they would vote for her as mayor.
They are among 16 candidates in the Halifax Regional Municipality mayoral race, where top campaign issues have been housing, affordability and accessibility.
About a quarter of voters in the municipality cast their ballots in advance polls.
Live results as votes are counted are expected to be posted on the Halifax municipal website around 8 p.m., an hour after polls close.
Those unofficial results will be updated throughout the evening.
Results will not be considered official until early next week when they are certified by a returning officer.
Outgoing Halifax Mayor Mike Savage announced in February that he would not seek another mandate, and on Sunday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed him to be Nova Scotia’s next lieutenant-governor.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2024.
