Angus Lewis Macdonald - Aftermath of Macdonald's Death

Aftermath of Macdonald's Death

Macdonald's death proved disastrous for provincial Liberals. There was no obvious successor to the popular premier. At the party's leadership convention held on September 9, 1954, the Liberals appeared badly split along religious lines. After five ballots, the convention rejected Harold Connolly, a Roman Catholic who had served as interim premier after Macdonald's death. Instead they chose the Protestant Henry Hicks. "Unfortunately for the Liberals", historian Murray Beck writes, "it appeared as if the delegates had ganged up to defeat the only Catholic among the contestants". Beck also notes that "Nova Scotia governments have always been most vulnerable after a change in leadership". In the next provincial election held on October 30, 1956, Robert Stanfield and his Conservatives won 24 seats, the Liberals 18. The 23-year Liberal era, begun under Macdonald's leadership, had finally ended.