A former prime minister and former deputy will lead the redesign of the boundaries of New Brunswick’s 49 provincial constituencies.
Roger Clinch, former mayor of Bathurst and progressive Conservative MP for a single term in Gloucester, will chair the commission with former Liberal Prime Minister Camille Thériault.
Two weeks ago, Green MP Kevin Arseneau accused the PCs and Liberals of “collusion” in drawing up a list of nominees that excluded the names chosen by his party.
The other designated are:
- Josée Rioux-Walker, Deputy Mayor of Drummond and Project Coordinator of the Women in Leadership for Women in Business New Brunswick initiative.
- Krista Ross, CEO of the Frederiction Chamber of Commerce.
- Emily Teed, chief of staff to Deloitte’s Atlantic regional managing partner.
- Roger Ouellette, political scientist at the University of Moncton.
Provincial law requires a redistribution of the electoral map every 10 years to take into account the change in population figures.
By law, the legislative administration committee of all parties elects the commissioners and the provincial cabinet must appoint the election.
Green concerns
Arseneau said earlier this month that Prime Minister Blaine Higgs’ chief of staff Louis Léger asked the Greens for names so they could be reviewed.
The Green MP said he refused to provide names to the prime minister’s office for review, because the law only mentions the role of the legislative committee in choosing names.
Instead, Arseneau proposed two names chosen by the Greens at the June 9 committee meeting. But he said it was rejected and the six names chosen by the PC and the Liberals were adopted.
The lack of other designated people could allow PCs and liberals to trade while redrawing the mountain map.
Green MP Kevin Arseneau accused the PCs and Liberals of “collusion” in drawing up a list of nominees that excluded the names chosen by his party. (Jacques Poitras / CBC News)
The Electoral Boundaries Act establishes a process that calculates the average number of voters in each of the province’s 49 constituencies, known as the “electoral quotient”.
Commissioners are required to draft a map in which the constituencies are “as close as possible” to the quotient. They can deviate up to 15 percent to accommodate so-called “communities of interest” and other factors.
And in “extraordinary circumstances” such as the need to ensure fair linguistic representation, the commission can deviate from the quotient by up to 25 percent.
The legislation requires the commission to be in place two years before the next provincial elections, which are scheduled for October 21, 2024.
Higgs had reflected after becoming prime minister on reducing the number of constituencies to 49. But that would have meant an amendment to the Electoral Act, and his government did not act accordingly.