Northside-Westmount candidates have history of switching parties

Two candidates in the Cape Breton riding of Northside-Westmount say most voters do not pay attention to political party affiliations, and that's probably a good thing, because the Liberal candidate is a former Progressive Conservative and the PC candidate used to be the Liberal MLA.

The riding was solidly Tory for 20 years, until Fred Tilley took it for the Liberals in the last election.

Now, he's running for the PCs, saying the government implemented many of the things the Liberals were fighting for, such as better health care, indexing tax brackets, a school lunch program and income assistance.

Tilley said he's not getting any pushback from voters at the doorstep.

"The odd person is concerned about why I switched, but when I explain that to them, they understand and most people are supportive of my decision," he said.

Tilley said when he was a Liberal, he suggested the caucus should vote for the PC government's budget because it contained positive aspects for voters, but the party disagreed.

"At the end of the day, it was a good budget for Nova Scotians and ... what I'm hearing at the door is people are excited about the future."

Tilley said partisan politics are increasingly irrelevant to voters, at least in Northside-Westmount, which includes parts of Sydney, North Sydney and Sydney Mines and some rural areas around those communities.

"I think the days of party allegiance are waning," he said. "For me, personally, it's more about my community.

"My community is number one to me and whatever way that I can do my best for my constituents and the community as a whole and Cape Breton, that's the way I'm going to go."

After he crossed the floor, the Liberals launched complaints with Elections Nova Scotia and the RCMP, saying Tilley had taken confidential voter information from the party's database.

Tilley recently admitted to that, but said it was his information to take, because he had gathered it for the party over the last three years.

Tilley's Liberal opponent this time, Danny Laffin, tried to run for the PCs in a 2019 byelection, but was kicked out of the party for reasons that have never been fully explained.

He ran as an independent in that election, which was won by the PC Murray Ryan, who was himself a former Liberal candidate.

In the 2021 general election, Tilley beat Ryan as a Liberal.

Laffin said voters still want improvements to the health-care system and better roads and are just looking for someone to fight for them in the legislature.

"People make choices and Fred made a choice to cross the floor and Danny Laffin made a choice to run for the Liberals and let's see what the voters have to say on Nov. 26," Laffin said. 

He also said he worked with the Liberals to get Tilley elected and wishes him well with his new party affiliation.

The NDP did not reply to a request for comment from candidate Katelyn Armstrong.

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