List of Nova Scotia opposition leaders

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

This is a list of leaders of the opposition party in the Nova Scotia Legislature, both as a colony and a Province of Canada. Since 1928, when its upper house, the Legislative Council of Nova Scotia was abolished, the province has had a unicameral parliamentary government. From Confederation, however, Nova Scotia has exclusively followed the modern Westminster convention whereby the leader of the opposition is the leader of the party that controls the second most seats in the House of Assembly.

Leaders of the opposition of the colony of Nova Scotia (1848–1867)

Picture Name Party Term
 
James W. Johnston
Conservative
1848–1857
  William Young
Liberal
1857–1860
 
James W. Johnston
Conservative
1860–1864
  A.G. Archibald
Liberal
1864–1867

Leaders of the opposition of the Province of Nova Scotia, since Confederation (1867–present)

Picture Name Party Term
  Hiram Blanchard
Liberal Conservative
1867–1874
 
Simon H. Holmes
Conservative
1875–1878
  N/A
Liberal
1879–1882
  Adam C. Bell
Liberal Conservative
1883–1886
 
William McKay
Liberal Conservative
1887–1890
  C.H. Cahan
Liberal Conservative
1891–1894
 
William McKay
Liberal Conservative
1895–1897
  Charles S. Wilcox
Liberal Conservative
1898–1901
  Charles E. Tanner
Liberal Conservative
1902–1908
  Charles S. Wilcox
Liberal Conservative
1909
  John M. Baillie
Liberal Conservative
1910–1911
  Charles E. Tanner
Liberal Conservative
1912–1916
  W.L. Hall
Liberal Conservative
1917–1920
  Daniel G. McKenzie
Labour
1921–1925
  William Chisholm
Liberal
1926–1930
  Alexander S. MacMillan
Liberal
1931–1933
  Gordon S. Harrington
Conservative
1934–1937
  Percy C. Black
Conservative
1938–1939
  Fred M. Blois
Conservative
1940
  Leonard W. Fraser
Conservative
1941
  Fred M. Blois
Conservative
1942–1945
  Russell Cunningham CCF 1946–1949
  Robert L. Stanfield
Progressive Conservative
1950–1956
  Henry D. Hicks
Liberal
1957–1960
  Earl W. Urquhart
Liberal
1961–1963
  Peter M. Nicholson
Liberal
1964–1967
  Gerald A. Regan
Liberal
1968–1970
  George I. Smith
Progressive Conservative
1970–1971
  John Buchanan
Progressive Conservative
1971–1978
  Gerald A. Regan
Liberal
1978–1979
  Benoit Comeau
Liberal
1980
  A.M. (Sandy) Cameron
Liberal
1980–1984
 
Vincent MacLean
Liberal
1985
  Bill Gillis
Liberal
1985–1986
  Vincent MacLean
Liberal
1986–1992
  Bill Gillis
Liberal
1992–1993
  Terrence Donahoe
Progressive Conservative
1993–1995
  John Hamm
Progressive Conservative
1995–1998
  Robert Chisholm
New Democratic Party
1998–1999
  Robert Chisholm (NDP), Russell MacLellan (Liberal), Wayne Gaudet (Liberal) Duties shared between Liberals and NDP 1999–2001
  John MacDonell
New Democratic Party
2001
  Darrell Dexter
New Democratic Party
2001–2009
  Stephen McNeil
Liberal
2009–2013
  Jamie Baillie
Progressive Conservative
2013–2018
  Karla MacFarlane
Progressive Conservative
2018
  Tim Houston
Progressive Conservative
2018–2021
  Iain Rankin
Liberal
2021–2022
  Zach Churchill
Liberal
2022-present