Alexa McDonough’s heir was named last night.
Megan Leslie, a legal aid lawyer, was voted the next NDP candidate for the federal Halifax riding.
She faced two other candidates: Irvine Carvery, who was struck out on the first ballot and Alexis MacDonald.
In front of more than 1,000 cheering NDP members, Leslie accepted the candidacy at the Dalhousie Student Union Building.
“Thank you for choosing me to be your candidate,” she said. “It’s a sweet victory, but it’s a short victory because the real work starts now.”
Leslie then asked the members to help her keep the seat for the NDP.
McDonough announced in June she would not make another run, after holding the federal riding for the NDP since 1997. After Leslie’s victory speech, McDonough said this would have been her 13th election and she just knew she had to ‘pass the torch’ to the next generation.
But she warned that just because she’s held the seat for so long and the territory is strong even provincially for the NDP, that doesn’t mean it will be a cakewalk for Leslie.
“We can take nothing for granted,” she said. “The seat doesn’t belong to any party. The seat belongs to the people of Halifax.”
McDonough finished with an emotional goodbye as she prepares to step down from politics and retire.
“I want to say one final, heart-felt thank you to the people of Halifax who have given me the most astounding privilege of representing them.”
Yesterday, lawyer Catherine Meade announced her intention to run for the Liberal nomination. Rosamond Luke, the founder and executive director of All Women’s Empowerment and Development Association, is looking to win the riding for the Conservatives, and the Green Party candidate is Darryl Whetter, a professor at Dalhousie University.
