Tories Elected in New Brunswick

Voters in New Brunswick have elected the Progressive Conservatives to govern the province. The Tories won 42 of 55 seats. David Alward will become the next Premier of New Brunswick.
Here's an interesting bit of trivia. Alward was born in Beverly, Massachusetts.

Shawn Graham and the Liberals were tossed from power after only a term in office. In fact, it is the first time in New Brunswick history a provincial government has lost power after a single term. Indeed, it is very unusual for provincial governments in Canada not to be re-elected at least once. The last time a provincial government was tossed out after a single term in office was the Ontario NDP government of Bob Rae in 1995 which I wrote about on the IC main earlier this month.

Graham, however, was elected with a tiny majority and governed as if he were Frank McKenna circa 1987. Particularly unpopular was the planned sale of the provincial utility NB Power to Hydro Quebec., a deal which ultimately fell apart.

The Liberals lost more than half their seats. Graham has already announced his resignation as leader of the New Brunswick Liberal Party, a post he has held since 2002.

For the second consecutive election, the NDP won no seats. There hasn't been a representative from the NDP in the New Brunswick legislature since Elizabeth Weir resigned as the provincial NDP leader in 2005.