Three public consultations will be organized by the end of July at CAP-Breton to probe the population as to the possibility of creating an Acadian electoral district protected in the Chéticamp region.
The government of Nova Scotia has set up a new commission for the delimitation of electoral districts to look at the effective representation of the Acadian community in the North of the county ofInverness.
This commission must conduct public consultations before submitting a stage report, at the latest on August 29.
Dates and places of public consultations:
- InvernessWednesday, July 23, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Canadian Royal Legion at 15857, avenue Central
- Chéticamp, Wednesday July 23, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at the Cultural Canton at 15118, Cabot track
- Port HawkesburyThursday July 24, from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., at the studio Shannon From the Civic Center to 606, rue Reeves
Those interested in speaking during these consultations must register by email at [email protected] or by phone at 902.424.4494. It is also possible to send a written submission to the same email address.
Gain before the courts
In 2019, a previous commission for the delimitation of electoral districts had considered that the Acadian community in the northwest of Cap-Breton was too small to justify its own district.
The Acadian Federation of Nova Scotia (Fane) challenged the decision of this former commission before the courts not to recommend the creation of a protected district for Chéticamp. This cause was heard in the fall of 2023.
The Acadian village of Chéticamp in Cap-Breton, October 24, 2023. (Archives photo)
Photo : Radio-Canada / Jonathan Villeneuve
Last fall, the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia ordered the province to set up by the end of the summer of 2026 a new commission responsible for redefining the electoral borders on the island of Cap-Breton taking into account the importance of the Acadian community of the county ofInverness.
In his decision, judge Pierre Muise reproached the 2019 commission for not having used the same criteria for Chéticamp that she used to recommend the restoration of the protected acadian districts ofArgyleof Clare and Richmond.
According to the magistrate, this commission did not take into account certain social, historical and geographic factors when it refused to the Acadians of the county ofInverness A so -called protected, less populous district and where the Acadian electorate would be less diluted in the English -speaking majority.
Last April, the progressive-conservative government of Tim Houston announced the composition and the mandate of a new commission. He entrusted the presidency to Kenneth Deveau, an Acadian from the region of Clare Who is also the rector of the Sainte-Anne University.
The FANE And members of the Acadian community of Chéticamp are confident that this time will be the right one for obtaining a protected electoral district. Residents of the region are also encouraged to sign a petition, to ensure success.
The new commission for the delimitation of the electoral districts of Nova Scotia will have to hold other public hearings before the submission of its final report, which was to take place no later than January 30, 2026.
