2011 Newfoundland and Labrador general election

The 2011 Newfoundland and Labrador general election took place on October 11, 2011, to elect members of the 47th General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party) formed a majority government in the 2007 election, with the Liberal Party serving as the Official Opposition and the New Democratic Party (NDP) serving as a third party.

Under amendments passed by the Legislature in 2004, elections in Newfoundland and Labrador are now held on fixed dates: the second Tuesday in October every four years.

The Progressive Conservatives, led by Kathy Dunderdale, won their third consecutive majority government. Dunderdale became only the third woman in Canadian history to lead a political party to power. The Liberal Party, led by Kevin Aylward, formed the Official Opposition, however the party placed third in the popular vote and Aylward himself was not elected to the legislature. Lorraine Michael's New Democratic Party won a record number of seats and placed second in the popular vote for the first time in the province's history.

Following Liberal leader Gerry Reid's defeat in the 2007 general election he resigned as the party's leader. The party subsequently chose Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair MHA Yvonne Jones as interim leader of the party and therefore the Official Opposition Leader in the House of Assembly. The party delayed calling a leadership election until 2010, and when nominations for the leadership closed on July 30, 2010, Jones was the only candidate to come forward and was acclaimed leader of the party. Only weeks later on August 13, 2010, Jones announced she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and would be taking time off to undergo treatment. During her time off Liberal House Leader Kelvin Parsons took over for Jones on an interim basis. The Liberal convention that would swear Jones in as leader was rescheduled from October 2010, to May 2011, due to her illness. She was sworn in as leader on May 28, 2011. On August 8, 2011, it was announced that Jones would step down as leader the following day on the advice of her doctor. The Liberal Party executive chose former MHA and cabinet minister Kevin Aylward as her successor on August 14, 2011.

On November 25, 2010, Premier Danny Williams made the surprise announcement that he would resign as leader and premier the next week. On December 3, 2010, Kathy Dunderdale, Williams' Deputy Premier, was sworn in as Newfoundland and Labrador's tenth Premier. Although she had originally stated she would not seek the permanent leadership she announced on December 30, 2010, she would run for the Progressive Conservative leadership. Her announcement came after several high-profile cabinet ministers announced they would not run and endorsed her candidacy. In January 2011, Dunderdale was acclaimed party leader when she was the only eligible candidate to seek the leadership. On April 2, 2011, she was sworn in as leader of the Progressive Conservatives.

• October 9, 2007: Elections held for the Newfoundland and Labrador Legislature in the 46th General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador.
• November 6, 2007: Progressive Conservative Susan Sullivan wins a deferred election in Grand Falls-Windsor-Buchans.
• November 13, 2007: Liberal leader Gerry Reid resign after failing to be re-elected.
• November 15, 2007: The Liberal Party select Yvonne Jones as interim leader of the party.

• May 21, 2008: Tom Rideout resigns as Deputy Premier, Government House Leader and Minister of Fisheries, in a dispute with the Premier's Office.
• June 4, 2008: Cape St. Francis MHA Jack Byrne dies.
• June 30, 2008: Baie Verte-Springdale MHA Tom Rideout resigns his seat.
• August 27, 2008: Two by-elections in Cape St. Francis and Baie Verte-Springdale are won by Progressive Conservative candidates Kevin Parsons and Kevin Pollard.

• October 2, 2009: The Straits – White Bay North MHA Trevor Taylor resigns from Cabinet and his seat.
• October 7, 2009: Terra Nova MHA Paul Oram resign from Cabinet and his seat.
• October 27, 2009: A by-election in The Straits – White Bay North elects Liberal Marshall Dean.
• November 26, 2009: A by-election in Terra Nova elects PC Sandy Collins.

• January 29, 2010: Topsail MHA Elizabeth Marshall resigns her seat to be appointed to the Senate of Canada.
• March 16, 2010: A by-election in Topsail elects PC Paul Davis.
• July 30, 2010: Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair MHA Yvonne Jones is acclaimed Liberal leader after being the only candidate for the party's leader.
• August 13, 2010: Yvonne Jones announces she has been diagnosed with breast cancer and that MHA Kelvin Parsons will serve as interim leader while she is receiving treatment.
• October 3, 2010: Conception Bay East - Bell Island MHA and Minister Dianne Whalen dies.
• November 25, 2010: Premier Danny Williams, Humber West MHA announces his retirement, effective December 3, 2010. Deputy Premier Kathy Dunderdale will be the Premier of the province in the interim.
• December 2, 2010: Progressive Conservative candidate David Brazil is elected MHA of Conception Bay East - Bell Island.
• December 3, 2010: Kathy Dunderdale is sworn in as the province's tenth Premier upon the resignation of Danny Williams, the first woman to do so.

• February 15, 2011: Progressive Conservative candidate Vaughn Granter is elected MHA of Humber West.
• April 2, 2011: Kathy Dunderdale is sworn in as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.
• May 28, 2011: Yvonne Jones is sworn in as leader of the Liberal Party.
• August 9, 2011: Jones steps down as leader of the Liberal Party for health reasons.
• August 14, 2011: Kevin Aylward is chosen as leader of the Liberal Party.
• September 19, 2011: Election call, Kathy Dunderdale asks Lieutenant Governor John Crosbie to dissolve the legislature.

At 10:00 am on September 19, 2011, Premier Dunderdale met with Lieutenant Governor John Crosbie who dissolved the 46th General Assembly, officially launching the election campaign. It was widely expected that the PCs would win the election.

The parties campaign slogans for the 2011 election are:

• Liberal Party – "We Can Do Better"
• New Democratic Party – "It's Time"
• Progressive Conservative – "New Energy"

Muskrat Falls

The tentative deal to develop the $6.2 billion Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project in Labrador was negotiated by the Progressive Conservative government in November 2010. The Liberal Party opposes the deal, saying it is bad for the province because it will increase the province's debt and will see electricity rates increase for consumers. The NDP have had similar concerns and both party leaders have called for spending on the project to stop until more independent analysis' can be conducted to see if the current deal is the best one for the province.

Public sector pension increases

The Liberal Party announced they would provide a one-time increase to public sector pensioners of 2.5%, as well as provide annual increases equivalent to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) up to 2%. While Aylward has said increasing payments would cost $13 million in the first year and about $10 million extra for each additional year, the Department of Finance stated that the plan would add $1.2 billion in additional liabilities to the pension plan. Dunderdale slammed the Liberal Party's plan calling it 'foolhardy'.

Dunderdale confrontation with fisheries workers

Toward the end of the campaign, Tory Leader Kathy Dunderdale was confronted by frustrated fisheries workers in Marystown in the district of Burin-Placentia West held by Minister of Fisheries & Aquaculture Clyde Jackman. Dunderdale, accompanied by Jackman and Grand Bank district MHA Darin King, refused to negotiate with the workers until after the election. Jackman went on to win the election by only 40 votes.

Dumaresque comment

Controversy arose at the St. John's Board of Trade debate when Liberal candidate Danny Dumaresque was asked about an appeal by the mayor of St. John's for a new financial arrangement between the city and the provincial government. Dumaresque stated that "there are a hell of a lot more priorities outside the overpass that need to be addressed before we start forking more money over to the City of St. John's." The comment led to divisions within the party, with Liberal candidate Drew Brown stating it was an “idiotic comment by an idiotic man.”

Bold incumbents indicates party leaders. The premier's name is boldfaced and italicized.

• All candidate names are those on the official list of confirmed candidates; names in media or on party website may differ slightly.
• Names in boldface type represent party leaders.
• † represents that the incumbent is not running again.
• § represents that the incumbent was defeated for nomination.
• ₰ represents that the incumbent ran in another district and lost the nomination
• ‡ represents that the incumbent is running in a different district.

• Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party

• CBC – Newfoundland and Labrador Votes 2011
• Elections Newfoundland and Labrador
• Election Almanac – Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Election 2011