Halifax

Halifax is a compact urban riding centred on the Halifax Peninsula, the historic heart of Nova Scotia's capital city. It includes the downtown core, the university district home to Dalhousie University and the University of King's College, and extends south through the neighbourhoods of the South End, the West End, and Spryfield. The riding also reaches along the Atlantic coast to include communities such as Herring Cove, Sambro, Prospect, and Pennant, as well as Sable Island, the remote sandbar national park reserve far offshore.

The seat was vacated in September 2024 when Liberal MP Andy Fillmore resigned to run successfully for Mayor of Halifax Regional Municipality. A byelection was called for April 2025, but it was overtaken by the general election call.

Candidates

Shannon Miedema (Liberal) is an environmental policy professional who served as Director of Environment and Climate Change for Halifax Regional Municipality, where she led the creation and implementation of HalifACT, the city's climate action plan. Originally from Ottawa, she holds degrees from Queen's University, the University of King's College, and Dalhousie University.

Mark Boudreau (Conservative) is a communications professional who spent over a decade with Loblaw as Director of Corporate Affairs. A recipient of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal for community service, he has chaired the boards of Neptune Theatre and the Halifax Chamber of Commerce and served on the boards of Halifax Stanfield International Airport and Mount Saint Vincent University.

Lisa Roberts (NDP) is a former provincial MLA for Halifax Needham who served in the Nova Scotia legislature from 2016 to 2021. A former CBC Radio journalist and nonprofit leader, Roberts holds graduate degrees from Dalhousie University in development economics and has been a prominent voice on housing, climate action, and forestry policy.

Amethyste Hamel-Gregory (Green Party) ran as the Green Party candidate in the riding.

Maricar Aliasut (People's Party) ran as the PPC candidate in the riding.

About the Riding

Halifax is the economic, cultural, and institutional centre of Atlantic Canada. The peninsula is home to major hospitals, universities, the provincial legislature, and a growing technology sector anchored by firms in ocean technology, defence, and digital media. The Halifax Shipyard, part of Irving Shipbuilding's National Shipbuilding Strategy contract, is a major employer building Arctic and offshore patrol ships for the Royal Canadian Navy.

The riding has experienced dramatic population growth and physical transformation, with downtown Halifax's population increasing by nearly a quarter between 2021 and 2024. High-rise construction has reshaped the skyline, but housing affordability has deteriorated sharply. A typical Halifax family now needs roughly 20 months of after-tax income to save for a down payment, up from about 13 months a decade earlier. Homelessness, tent encampments, and a shortage of supportive housing have become visible issues in the riding.

The 2025 contest in Halifax drew particular attention because the NDP had historically held the riding or run competitively in it, making it a three-way battleground. Climate policy, housing affordability, and public transit investment were central campaign themes, reflecting the priorities of the riding's large student and young professional population.