Canadians have re-elected a Liberal minority government but South Shore-St.Margaret’s will have new representation in Ottawa.

With 269 of 270 polls reporting, Conservative Rick Perkins has defeated incumbent Liberal Bernadette Jordan by almost 2,000 votes.

Slightly more than 60 percent of eligible electors in South Shore-St.Margaret’s cast a ballot which is just above the national turnout of 58 percent.

The results of Monday’s election are a reversal of fortunes for Perkins who lost by 7,000 votes to Jordan in the 2019 election.

Since 2019, Jordan has been Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard.

She was the only federal minister in Atlantic Canada, in a role closely tied to the economy of the region.

During the campaign, opponents called on Jordan to defend her record after a decades-long dispute regarding First Nations fishing rights boiled over in the riding last year.

The Liberals are leading or elected in 158 of 338 ridings across the country with 98 percent of polls reporting.

If the numbers hold, the election has meant little change in the House of Commons.

The Liberals will add three seats for a total of 158, the Conservatives stay steady at 119, the NDP gained one to hold 25 seats, the Bloc Québécois saw a two and the Green Party held fast at two seats.

E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

To listen to the broadcast of this story, press play below.