Eighty-three per cent of Nova Scotia Liberals cast a well-thought vote on the weekend.
That’s the margin of support Stephen McNeil received from his fellow party members in regard to his leadership. Going into the weekend party meeting in Antigonish, those commenting said he would need a commanding 75 per cent support to quiet those grumbling about the job he was doing.
Getting an 83 per cent ‘yes’ response to the ballot question “Do you support Stephen McNeil’s leadership of the Liberal Party?” was indeed solid endorsement.
A minor scandal in recent weeks within the party saw an email circulated using a party contact list that anonymously challenged McNeil’s performance. He must be gratified to receive this kind of response and thus avoid a formal review.
Granted, in last June’s election McNeil didn’t deliver the number of seats anyone in the party might have hoped, although the Liberals did manage to at least become official Opposition.
But considering the momentum the NDP had going into that race, the eventual winners drew most of the undecided vote.
McNeil has provided the best leadership his party has seen in years. Most Nova Scotians would have a tough time naming his predecessors in the past 15 years, they’ve been that forgettable.
In the election campaign and since, McNeil has offered some constructive criticism and credible opposing views to the governing party.
The Conservatives, somewhat in disarray since bombing in the last election, and currently with an interim leader, have had a lot less of substance to say from opposition benches.
Had McNeil done poorly on the weekend vote, dissatisfaction would have snowballed. Had the party subsequently come to a conclusion they needed to consider a new leader, they’d have ended up with another vaguely recognized entity at the helm to fight the next election.
