The Pollcast: How P.E.I.'s experiment with minority rule is going
Kerry Campbell talks about the first few weeks of P.E.I.'s new PC minority government
Politics in Prince Edward Island changed dramatically back in April, when the Progressive Conservatives ousted the Liberals after 12 years in office, the province elected its first minority government in modern times and the Greens took on the role of Official Opposition for the first time anywhere in Canada.
So how's it going so far?
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With 12 seats in the 27-seat Legislative Assembly, Premier Dennis King's PCs need the support of either the Greens (eight seats) or the Liberals (six seats) in order to continue in office. It's made for a style of politics different from what the Island has seen in the past — a little less partisan, a little more collaborative.
The final outcome of the Apr. 23 election will be known on Monday, when voters finally cast their ballots in the district of Charlottetown-Hillsborough Park. The vote had been deferred until now due to the death of Josh Underhay, the Green Party's candidate in the district, in the last days of the campaign.
The result won't change the minority math in the legislature, but the three parties are still hoping for a win. The PCs want an endorsement of their government (and a seat in Charlottetown), the Greens are looking for a sign they're consolidating their breakthrough and the Liberals just need some good news after being relegated to third party status for the first time in their history.
To break it all down, on this week's episode of The Pollcast host and CBC polls analyst Éric Grenier is joined by the CBC's provincial affairs reporter in P.E.I., Kerry Campbell.
Listen to the full discussion above — or subscribe to the CBC Pollcast and listen to past episodes of the show.
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