St. John's East

St. John's East covers the eastern half of Newfoundland and Labrador's capital city, including the downtown core, the historic harbour, Signal Hill, and the residential neighbourhoods stretching north and east. The riding also takes in several smaller communities outside the city proper, including Bauline, Flatrock, Logy Bay—Middle Cove—Outer Cove, Pouch Cove, and Torbay. It is the more urban and historically older of the two St. John's ridings, encompassing the city's commercial centre, Memorial University of Newfoundland's main campus, and many of its oldest neighbourhoods.

Candidates

Jack Harris (NDP) — Harris was the incumbent MP and one of the most prominent NDP politicians in Newfoundland and Labrador's history. Educated at Memorial University, the University of Alberta, and the London School of Economics, he practised law in St. John's as a partner at Williams, Harris, Roebothan & McKay. Harris first won a seat in the House of Commons in a 1987 by-election in St. John's East but was defeated in the 1988 general election. He then moved to provincial politics, winning the provincial riding of Signal Hill—Quidi Vidi in a 1990 by-election and holding the seat through four general elections. He served as leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador NDP from 1992 to 2006, the second-longest party leadership tenure in the province's history. Harris returned to federal politics in 2008, winning back the St. John's East seat.

Jerry Byrne (Conservative) — Byrne was a St. John's businessman and engineer. He had served as CEO of D.F. Barnes Ltd., a company he grew from a small operation into a major player in the offshore oil drilling supply sector with more than 300 employees and annual revenues on track to exceed $100 million by 2008.

John Allan (Liberal) and Robert Miller (Green Party) also contested the riding.

About the Riding

St. John's East is the institutional and commercial heart of Newfoundland and Labrador. Memorial University of Newfoundland, the province's only university, is the riding's largest employer, with its main campus anchoring the city's education and research sectors. The university's Ocean Sciences Centre and its engineering faculty had become closely tied to the offshore oil industry by 2011, training workers and conducting research for an energy sector that was transforming the provincial economy. The oil and gas industry contributed roughly $12 billion to the provincial economy in 2011, and much of the corporate and administrative infrastructure supporting the offshore platforms on the Grand Banks was headquartered in St. John's.

The riding's downtown core along Water Street and Duckworth Street housed the province's financial, legal, and government services sectors. The Port of St. John's, one of the oldest in North America, handled supply vessel traffic for the offshore oil platforms as well as traditional fishery operations. Signal Hill National Historic Site, overlooking the harbour entrance, served as both a major tourist attraction and a symbol of the city's deep history. The riding also included the Health Sciences Centre, the province's largest hospital and a major employer. The suburban communities north of the city — Torbay, Flatrock, and Pouch Cove — had been growing as commuter settlements. Overall, the riding had a median income of roughly $41,200, somewhat above the provincial average, reflecting the concentration of professional, institutional, and energy-sector employment.